Podcast appearances and mentions of Del Taco

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The 16:9 PODCAST IS SPONSORED BY SCREENFEED – DIGITAL SIGNAGE CONTENT All kinds of people in this industry are very aware that while there is lot of dodgy stuff, there is also lots of well made display technology available from Chinese manufacturers who have zero brand recognition outside of that country. Buy potential buyers don't tend to have the time or resources to make the big flights over the Pacific to visit China and directly source reliable manufacturing partners. And they really - if they're smart - don't want to just order stuff, and then cross their fingers and toes hoping the stuff shows up, lines up with what was ordered, works, and then meets necessary certifications. Jacob Horwitz saw an opportunity to create a new company that functions as something as a boutique digital signage distribution company that sources, curates and markets display and related technologies that its resellers can then take to market. Horwitz will be familiar to a lot of industry people for a pair of installation companies he started and ran the U.S. - IST and later Zutek. In both cases, he sold the companies, and he could have just retired ... but he didn't want to retire. Nor did his wife, because a Jacob with too much time on his hands would make her crazy. So he started Illuminology with a longtime industry friend and business partner Stephen Gottlich, who for many years ran the digital file for Gable. I caught up with Horwitz to talk about the origins and rationale for Illuminology, which is just spinning up but has some big plans. Subscribe from wherever you pick up new podcasts. TRANSCRIPT Jacob, it was nice speaking with you. You have started a company called Illuminology, which sounds like you started a cult, but I think that's not what it is.  Jacob Horwitz: Not yet, no, We hope it will be at some point, a good following, but first off, Dave, thanks for having me. It's been nine years since you and I first chatted on a podcast. I don't know if you realize that. It was December of 2016, and we had just finished, I think maybe the nationwide rollout of Burger King, you and I had a chat about that, and it's hard to believe nine years have gone by.  This was when you had IST?  Jacob Horwitz: Installation Service Technologies was a nationwide installation and service company, that was sold in 2018 and then a year later, I restarted a company called Zootech, and I was approached by a customer who was looking to be entrepreneurial and that company is now owned by Karen Salmon. It's a woman-owned business mow, and her father was the founder of Powerpoint of Sale. I took a couple of years off. I have a person that I have worked with for 30 years, my business partner, Stephen Gottlich. I think you've met Stephen, and he has been working with Gable Signs for the last 17 years and I think what Illuminology is now is a culmination of really two parallel journeys. Stephen took a traditional sign company 17 years ago down a path of innovation, and Gable went from a bending metal traditional sign company to a visual solutions company my background, which has been installation and service for the last 20 years, brings together two people who are a little bit older than when you and I first talked nine years ago.  It was probably 60 pounds ago when I talked to you for the first time. I'm a little gray or a little wiser and a little bit older. So the two of us come from really parallel journeys in different areas of digital signage, and we wanted to create something a little different in the United States. We'd seen some business models and other parts of the world that seem to be working. So we wanted to create a marketplace that would expand digital signage to companies interested in expanding their scope of business. So we focus a lot on traditional sign companies other technology-type companies, and installation companies. They all have some type of footprint in the verticals with technology but they're not carrying digital signage.  So we thought, how do we expand digital signage to reach a lot more people? And we've come up with this business model.  So for people who are completely unfamiliar with it, how do you describe it in your elevator pitch? Jacob Horwitz: The easiest way to describe it is to think of us as a traditional distributor of digital signage to authorized resellers. Much like a Blue Star, B&H, except that we're very boutique, and we're very focused, and we're very passionate. Stephen and I are not, we've been fortunate in business. I'm 65, Stephen is 70-ish, so we know we don't have a lot of time to build something that's going to take years and years, but we wanted to build something special.  So you would be like, an Almo or those kinds of companies, but much more focused specifically on digital signage?  Jacob Horwitz: … And being able to support them differently. So take a digital traditional sign company, next month, we'll be at the International Sign Show in Las Vegas, the USA, and a lot of those people are digital, but it's amazing how many fast signs, and banners to go, those types of places that are selling digital signage today and have no idea what digital is. They're very old and traditional.  I think of it if you sold typewriters or telephones a couple of decades ago and you didn't evolve in the IP phones and computers, you're probably not in business anymore. So we're taking a lot of those types of sign companies. We have a course called Illuminology University. We take them through an 8 to 10-week course. These are live training classes and curricula we put together to train them about what is a sign in digital singage, what's LED, what's LCD, what is GOB versus COB, just really teaching them about the industry and they have a lot of reach in the verticals that traditional people selling digital signage today don't have. The other thing that makes us unique. When you go to traditional companies like Blue Stars, you don't have everything available under one distributor. We have an experience center that's opening next week in Kansas City. It's a supermarket of visual solutions, so you'll be able to see not just LED or LCD, but you're also going to see light boxes, you're going to see different kiosks, you're going to see where AI comes into play with digital signage, you're going to have a good understanding in our experience center of the programmatic side of how things can be monetized with a digital retail network. I think that because of the 30 years that Steven and I have been involved in technology and in the last twenty in digital signage, we can be much more of a boutique to help people with a wider range of solutions, not just a traditional 55-inch monitor, but LED posters, you had on your blog a few weeks ago that digital desk, which is part of our showroom, so I think it's about innovation. I think it's about a wider range of solutions, and it's hopefully in our last chapters of life, having a lot of fun with our partners.  So I assume if I call or contact one of the larger distributors who do unified communications, do all kinds of different things, and I start asking them about it, I'm a POS company, I have a customer who's asking me about menu boards and things like that. I don't know where to start.  If you talk to a larger distribution company, they have a sheet or a system that lists all the stuff they have and they can rattle off, here's what we have, what do you want, whereas you're saying because you're much more focused on this area and you have an experience center, people could come in and you can try to find something that's tailored to their needs as opposed to what we have.  Jacob Horwitz: Yeah, I think that all those traditional distribution models are very good at taking orders and taking money. A couple of them even have some departments where they're trying to help you with that consultive part of the business but I think at the end of the day, from my installation side, conservatively, we installed well over 400,000 displays in every kind of vertical you could imagine when I owned IST.  We did the new SoFi Stadium. We did all of their point of sale. Arlington Stadium, we did all of their digital assets when Daktronics had contracted us. And Stephen has done every kind of hardware installs you could think of when he was with Gable. So I think that being able to work with a company and be there to hold their hand too, we've already gotten on a plane and gone to sales calls with our partners. You're not going to get that from a traditional distributor. We work and do the RFPs with them. We work with them on pricing and quotes. So it's a little bit different than just trying to take an order so I think that's what makes us unique and the education and our school of hard knocks, you know, god knows, we've made an awful lot of mistakes in 20 years So I think we're gotten pretty good at what we do.  So are you selling strictly third-party stuff, or are there products that fall under the Illuminology brand or a related brand?  Jacob Horwitz: We've been going back and forth for a decade now to China. Stephen and I's first project together, was Simon Properties, 250 malls, and one of the largest media networks for digital out-of-home in the country, we designed the kiosk 10 years ago that they were still using and running in their malls, and that was a factory direct where we worked directly with the factories, built a kiosk, and were able to give Simon an amazing solution, especially where technology was 10 years ago.  So through that experience and over the last decade, we've met absolutely the best factories in China. There are a lot of stereotypes of what a Chinese factory could look like, and until you go and you see the automation and the technology there, God knows you've done it. You've been all over the world. It's not what a lot of people think. So we work directly with factories. We are creating two brands. There are more later on in the year, we are white labeling or branding our product. There'll be a line of displays called LightScapes, and then there'll be a line of kiosks called EasyOSK. So these are part of our longer-term business plan to have a brand. So you're not just saying, well, we bought these from some factories in Taiwan Korea Vietnam and China. We work very closely with the factories. We work very closely with people like AUO who are on the display side, and the panel side, and we will have some things that are unique within that brand. It will not just be the same product that everybody can buy. But because we're doing factory direct because we've got ten-year relationships with these factories, and they know Stephen and me well. We've been going except during COVID several times a year to China. I think that we're able to buy from them at incredibly good pricing and pass those savings on to our resellers. So what if you had a Chinese manufacturer that's strong domestically in that country and has a lot of them trying to come to the U.S. or over to Europe and say, here we are, and not get anywhere, would you sell their product under their brand or would it have to fall under one of your brands? Jacob Horwitz: No, we sell generic products as well. So for example, that desk that you talk about, I was in that factory last month. The person who owns that factory is a very small equity owner within Illuminology because we've known her for ten years and anything that comes from any factory out of China, she will go do that quality check before it ever hits the container to get over here. So she's a very instrumental part of our business over there, but we sell some of the stuff out of her factory as a generic product. It's not necessarily branded with LightScapes. It might be branded with Illuminology, but when you go look at the certification tags and serial numbers, it's still her company name on it, whereas LightScapes and EasyOSK are true white-labeled products that are going to be unique to us. Does that get around any regulatory issues in terms of what can come over from China if it's coming through you?  Jacob Horwitz: The regulations that are driving everybody in our industry crazy right now are the tariffs. But, to us, I think some of the big things that you don't see out of Chinese companies are the right approvals. We're very focused right now on our products being a UL or UL equivalent. There are five or six laboratories that are like MET. That is exactly like UL. It's UL-approved. We had a very large factory send us apart to test and they looked at it yesterday and we already rejected it because the power supply was not a UL-approved power supply. We said, we're not even going to test it.  So I think that those are things that are not regulatory from the U.S., but they're important to us, from a safety side, especially when you're working with enterprise tier one customers, they, have to have the right certifications, but I think the only thing that's causing us headaches is not the regulatory side, but, trying to figure out the right pricing with tariffs and how we handle that. Cause it's changing by the day.  Jacob Horwitz: Every time I look up, I'm afraid to look at the TV to see if it's higher or whatnot, but all of our pricing that we post to our dealers today is a landed cost from Kansas City. So it's including if we had inbound shipping or we had tariffs, we don't want our resellers to have to worry about that and they know that this is the pricing and if the tariffs go away, then we can lower that price. But if it goes crazy, they need to be prepared. We're working closely with some factories right now in Taiwan, Korea, and others in Vietnam so that we have a backup solution because right now the lion's share is coming from China.  If it's touched in Taiwan or touched in Vietnam, but with Chinese components, does that make a difference? Jacob Horwitz: Yeah, we just had that problem. We had ordered some stuff that came in from Canada, and this was before the Canadian tariff of 25%. This was two-three weeks before that, and we got a bill for tariffs, and we were talking with the U.S. Customs and the experts at DHL and UPS, and it turns out, if you're buying something from, for example, the great area of Canada, where you're sitting at home, but the company we bought it from manufactured their part in China when they ship it to us and their commercial invoice to U.S. Customs asks the company in Canada, where the country of origin it was manufactured and even though I bought it from Canada, had no idea that the part I ordered was not manufactured in Canada, we got hit with that 20 percent tariff on that product, and that surprised us. We didn't think it through or understand and the hard part is even when you talk to the absolute top people at U.S. Customs at the borders that are doing this, they're not even sure hour by hour what the rules are. So it's been hard.  We had another container come in and we had, I think, a $7k or $8k tariff. This is when it was 10%, but it landed in the U.S. before the tariff started and they still would not release it without us paying the tariff. Two days ago, we got that money back from U.S. customs. They realized they shouldn't have even charged it. It was before the date the tariff started. But unfortunately, by the time we released it, they held it hostage for a bit. So it's a hard situation, but we're going to work with other countries and I think that everybody's in the same boat, and I think in terms of pricing, our distribution model is much like the traditional guys. It's on a very low margin. So we have to have a lot of resellers that are looking to expand their business. So I'm curious about markets like Vietnam and India, which I keep hearing about, having gotten into electronics and being alternatives to Korea, Taiwan, particularly China, is that industry, particularly on the display side, mature enough now to buy products from there?  Jacob Horwitz: Since September, I've visited sixteen different countries across the world, I think on three or four continents and getting ready for the right factories and the right things and just enjoying travel at the same time, and the one thing that surprised me is how far behind the U.S. is compared to a lot of parts of the world and how much digital signage you see. Also, when you talk to these people what they're paying for digital signage throughout other parts of the world is far less money than the U.S. customers paying us companies for digital signage. The margins in Asia and Europe are much thinner than the traditional margins that resellers have been getting in the U.S.  Our motto, and you see it across our website, is “The Best for Less”, and we have tried to find the best factories in the world and be able to give it at a price that is not greedy. That's a win for us, for our resellers, and most importantly for the companies that are trying to buy and put that digital signage into their business so they can inspire and tell a story to their customer. And I think that even in the smallest towns of Vietnam, you still see digital outdoor LEDs on the sides of buildings and you go into the shopping malls and it's far more digital than you see here. So that was interesting to me as I've got to travel the world in the last four months. Is it a function of cost or awareness?  Jacob Horwitz: I'm not sure, but I'm assuming first it's a function of cost because where they're working on margins that are so much less, it allows that to get into people's businesses, and when you're charging $1k for a 55-inch commercial grade LCD, 500 nit monitor, it's a barrier to entry. So we're trying to brand something and bring something to the market where we can be 20% less to the end user than a lot of the traditional things, and we think we've accomplished that. The tariffs hurt us a little bit, but they hurt everybody by and large. So I think that's really why the U.S. is slower. I don't want to use the word greed. I own businesses, but people have tried to get margins that I don't think you can get anymore, and I think that you're going to have to find other ways to monetize your business through the installation side, through the content side, and I think that it's also helping companies. It's a big part of what we do. I think of Chris at Stratacash, he has a whole area where he helps monetize their solutions and it's helped, and we're looking at that closely. We're working with three or four companies right now where we can have our resellers work directly with them and educate their end users on how they can monetize the solution, through advertising in certain verticals. Not all verticals are conducive to digital out-of-home, but most are.  So that's an important part of how we're going to help move products into places that normally maybe couldn't afford to put the right solutions in. I assume that there are all kinds of people in North America, the U.S. in particular, who are aware that they can buy stuff via AliExpress or whatever. But they've heard enough to know, yes, you can pay substantially less, but you have to cross your fingers when it shows up.  Is Illuminology positioned as a safe harbor way to do it? Like we're doing the sourcing, we've figured that part out so we could pass on those savings without all the worry. Jacob Horwitz: Look to me, those sites are a lot like a box of chocolates. You never really know what you're going to get when that product shows up. As I said, even with the sample we got from somebody yesterday not being the right display, UL, and approvals, we're not going to be a website where you can buy whatever you want. It's going to be very focused on innovation. It's going to be the same factories. As I'm sure you've seen I get if I get one I get at least three emails every day from some Chinese factory trying to sell you whatever and everyone is a nickel cheaper than the other and I think that's just Pennywise and quality foolish.  So we're not going to be that it's going to be the best for less, and if we can create this supermarket of visual solutions, and it's a great product and the pricing can hit the street to an end user, double-digit, less expensive, and we are distributing through companies that have reached where the traditional resellers aren't touching, then we think that will help expand digital signage across the U.S.  So these would be reached to like the sign companies you mentioned, maybe the point of sale technology companies, those kinds of companies?  Jacob Horwitz: I have a guy I talked to a couple of days ago who sells medical devices. Nothing to do with digital signage. He's out there every day selling blood pressure machines or whatever medical devices he's selling and in the last few days, I've probably talked three times to him now about the opportunity he has to do stuff in the medical world because he's already out there calling on places to put in screens and some LED posters. And, so I think it's all kinds of places that maybe haven't even thought about incorporating digital signage into their end-user business, and these people are now educating why being able to tell a story through digital is so much better than a static sign.  So yeah, it's been enlightening to see all the different verticals you can all of a sudden make inroads that you never thought about. Yeah. So many companies are just going down the same familiar path of chasing QSRs, chasing retail, and I've always advised people to look at those other kinds of companies that already have established trust with your target vertical who supply other things to them and partner with them. Jacob Horwitz: Yeah, it's been interesting. When I was doing the installation side, we did a lot of QSR, McDonald's, Burger King, Sonic, Del Taco, that type of stuff, and a lot of them have seen a few of the first initial posts we've done and they're calling and asking more of what we can do and I'm excited just about window technology whether that be an LED, a double-sided LCD hanging in the window of a fast food restaurant is so much more effective than printing two breakfast sandwiches for $5 and shipping it out to the store, hoping the manager puts it in the window during the promotional time. Half the time, three weeks after the motions are over, they still have that digital thing in there saying breakfast sandwiches or the static poster thing, and then at 10:30 when breakfast is over, they're still talking about breakfast sandwiches instead of talking about Value meals or other desserts or other things they could be buying during dinner. So it makes nothing but sense to have those assets in there.  But the people who are buying their outdoor digital menu board don't even offer that product. So we feel that a supermarket with a full set of solutions, in a C-store to be able to do a stretch screen and a gondola and still do their monitors over their register and doing their digital menu board and having things that inspire people to walk in from the pump into the C-store, we have that full range of product where a lot of people just don't have a full range of offerings to that.  When you say a full range of products, is it purely display technology, or does your supermarket have other things?  Jacob Horwitz: We do light boxes, which are just an aluminum extruded frame that hangs on a wall with backlit LED, but it's a fabric, you see them in every airport. So we do a lot of light boxes, and that's a very affordable and very effective solution. It's a static display, but it pops.  We are doing music. We have partnered with CloudCover. CloudCover is owned by SiriusXM, I believe, and Pandora, because we think that it's part of the whole experience, it's touching all the senses of when you go into that business, we think music is a really important part of branding your business. So there are several out there that are there. We've hitched our ride there on the software side. Because we have to support the dealers, we have, we offer two software platforms, and it's because of relationship and stability and they're the best. There's a saying, if you're the smartest guy in the room, you're in the wrong room and so we've partnered with people that make me where I am not even close to the smartest guy in the room. We love working with Navori. We think Jeffrey Weitzman is amazing. So we offer to our partners and we've worked aggressively to have a good distribution model in Navori to our partners and potential end users. So if I'm sitting in a room with Jeff Hastings, I'm not the smartest guy in the room anymore. So we offer BrightSign, and BrightAuthor, and the players we go with are either the Navori or the BrightSign players, and we offer that CMS. They're not. The cheapest CMS, you had a great interview with Alistair and what they're doing and I listened to you last night. So there are a lot of options, but we have to support the dealer network. So to be able to have a dealer that wants to go off and do a different CMS, we support that. They can send us software and we'll test it to make sure, particularly if it's going to be SOC, that what they're using is going to run properly on that version of Android. So we'll support them that way or just before we order the product, we'll go into our lab and throw that on, but we can't support that dealer network on how to use the CMS. We have BrightAuthor and Novori, and we're good, and then we have two full-time people thatwho NOVA certified. So on the LED side, we're no, we have NOVA-certified experts, so we can help them with Novastar. So we can support that, but we can't support every CMS. So we encourage them, especially if they need a 4-a-month CMS, then I think that Alistair is a great solution, and there are a lot of those types of companies out there. But that won't be us. We'll have a couple of CMS, we'll have the music solution and we hope we can create a visual experience and a sensory experience that when they walk into an end user that's bought a product through one of our resellers, that product's inspiring consumers to spend more money. You and Stephen are hands-on with this, but how many other people do you have working with you?  Jacob Horwitz: Oh gosh, I've tapped into a lot of my old employees in a lot of years, so Stephen and I have known each other for 30 years. For us, it's more passionate at this age. It's certainly not about really the money. This is because your wife said you need to do something.  Jacob Horwitz: After years of being in the house and driving her crazy every 10 minutes, she made it clear I will either go find a job, or I'll have to support her next husband. So that had a little bit to do with it. But Stephen and I are wired the same way. It's about quality. It's about good solutions. It's never been about trying to make money on this. I think it's helping people. The people that I've brought in, I have a Project Manager who worked for me starting 15 years ago, and now she's ahead of our marketing, Becca, and she's been with me for a decade and a half. The girl in my accounting department has been with me for over 15 years. I have a fragment in the house Legal who is my full-time in my old business and they've all been around at least 10 or 15 years. My CIO has been with me since 1999. So he was in college when he started. So we've got a good, like Stephen and I, that these are not newbies to this industry. One of my Project Managers started with me when we first talked nine years ago when she was a Senior Project Manager for Burger King. So, everybody that I've surrounded myself with so far, there's been at least a decade of hitting the shows, doing the installs, and that school of hard knocks. So have you got 20 people, 40 people? Jacob Horwitz: Right now, we're a team of maybe ten or eleven people. I have three people coming in next week for interviews after the experience center is open that are all industry veteran types and we're just getting started. The idea started in September. I went to Infocomm and then maybe I saw you and just started feeling the waters. We were going to launch in early January or February. We're a month old. The container of our showroom sat in Long Beach for six weeks before it got. It took longer to get from Long Beach to our offices than it did from China to Long Beach. So we're just getting started. But we're going to stay in a boutique. We don't want to be all things to all people.  Right, and they can find you online at Illuminology.com?  Jacob Horwitz: Illuminology.com and there's an online brochure of the product and we thank you. And Dave, I said this to you the other day, but I want to say it again. I need to thank you because, for everybody I've ever hired for the last decade, the first thing we have them do is go through your podcast and your blogs and learn about the industry, and what you do for us is so valuable and I mean that with all sincerity.  Thank you.  Jacob Horwitz: We hired a new sales guy and he started a month ago. He called me yesterday and said, Do you know this Dave Haynes guy? He didn't know, he did not know I had a podcast today. He goes, I am learning so much from him. And, I go, yeah, I'm chatting with him tomorrow. So thank you for what you do as well.  Thank you. That's very kind.  Jacob Horwitz: Very well deserved. So thank you for the opportunity to share our story and we look forward to working with the people in the industry, to help and expand digital signage into places that can be more like your Europe where it's everywhere. All right. Thank you!

The Oscars dominated the headlines this weekend! Did you catch the excitement of the award show? Shifting gears to local updates, 3D printers are set to revolutionize home construction! Ball Arena is leading the way with innovative Sky Cams for both the NBA and NHL, and Katy is celebrating the possibility that Del Taco might not be lost to us after all.The fun continues on our social media pages!Jeremy, Katy & Josh Facebook: CLICK HERE Jeremy, Katy & Josh Instagram: CLICK HERE

Del Taco unexpectedly closed 18 of its 19 Colorado stores this week. 31 million people have already tuned into to watch the new Gabby Petito documentary on Netflix.

Del Taco unexpectedly closed 18 of its 19 Colorado stores this week. 31 million people have already tuned into to watch the new Gabby Petito documentary on Netflix. After Gene Hackman was discovered at his home it was initially believed that carbon monoxide was the likely culprit for Hackman's death. However, authorities have announced the death is now under investigation. Everyone is worried about Justin Bieber posting videos of himself smoking on Instagram. We tell a lot of jokes on our show and sometimes people don't realize they're joke. Do you get mad when you're duped by one of our jokes? We need suggestions for songs to play on our ST Patrick's day float! Both BJ and Jamie have something to confess. They both still have their XMAS stuff up.

Josh is struggling this morning as his credit cards keep getting declined, leaving him unable to make any purchases. Meanwhile, Jeremy is facing an extremely hectic weekend, packed with activities that leave him with little to no downtime. On another note, Katy is heartbroken over the news that Del Taco is closing its doors in Colorado.The fun continues on our social media pages!Jeremy, Katy & Josh Facebook: CLICK HERE Jeremy, Katy & Josh Instagram: CLICK HERE

Welcome to Shani's Sad Animals Facts Podcast: This week we're talking about extinction of White Rhinos.Theme music by Benedict Kupstas of Field Guides, graphics and logo by Turning Pages Designs.You can always email us at circleyeerk@gmail.com and find us on Instagram @circleyeerk.

Send us a textIn this episode of Give an Ovation, we welcome Erin Levzow, a hospitality marketing and technology expert with nearly 20 years of experience at brands like Caesars, MGM, Wingstop, Freebirds, and Del Taco. Erin shares her insights on how to blend technology with human connection to create exceptional guest experiences.Zack and Erin discuss:Why brands often forget about the guest and how to refocus on their needsThe power of consistency in building customer loyaltyHow technology can enhance emotional connections rather than replace themThe importance of meeting guests where they are—both digitally and in personWhy marketing and technology teams must work together for true successHow brands like Wingstop evolved their messaging to better connect with customersTune in to hear Erin's expert take on guest experience, marketing innovation, and the future of hospitality tech!Thanks, Erin!

Do you find it hard to find time? let's get into it a little bit, also speed limits, Del Taco news, and a little bit of video game talk.

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Trump signs executive order to protect women and girls in sports. Left lying about Musk and DOGE. Del Taco coming to Indiana. Trump and the reset in 3 Bourbons. Yes. Politico got paid by our tax dollarsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Trump signs executive order to protect women and girls in sports. Left lying about Musk and DOGE. Del Taco coming to Indiana. Trump and the reset in 3 Bourbons. Yes. Politico got paid by our tax dollars. Tony taking limo to Billy Joel concert. CBS forced to release unedited Kamala interview. Super Bowl recipe options. Arnold Schwarzenegger humidor Protestors outside the Statehouse. Pam Bondi quickly getting to work. Is Jesse Brown off any committees? Blind man getting gun permit. Egg prices are result of the killing of chickens, not inflation. President Trump at the National Prayer BreakfastSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Shallow Hal, Envy, Del Taco and also a good Jerry episode. The Van Buren Boys never hassle their own kind.

Suscríbete al canal de youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/ModestoLule  Visita nuestra blog: http://www.modestolule.blogspot.com  Nuestro facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ModestoLuleZ  Nuestro twitter: https://twitter.com/modestolule  Nuestro Instagram: https://instagram.com/modestolule  Escúchanos las 24 horas en radio por Internet:  http://www.radiosepa.com/  http://www.emisoras.com.mx/sepa/ TUNEIN: http://tunein.com/radio/Radio-Sepa-s123984/ http://www.emisoras.com.mx/sepa/ A través de la APP de Radio Sepa en ANDROID o en APPLE. Descarga los podcast en: http://www.padremolleto.blogspot.com/ Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/4KCKKSCXQTgXoYeQyUcOy1 iTunes Google podcast Anchor: https://anchor.fm/modesto-radio Contáctanos por correo: modestoradio@gmail.com

As Mitch navigates Jen leaving for the weekend, the guys recall being thrown out of Del Taco, Mitch has a confession for Mike, and a surprise for Jen!!

On this week's Extra Serving, NRN editor in chief Sam Oches and executive editor Alicia Kelso discuss two trends that have already made themselves known in the early days of 2025: value menus and beverage innovation. How might these two trends influence the restaurant industry in the year ahead? And how can restaurants put value menus to work for them without getting stuck with discounted prices? Plus they discuss Noodles & Co., which received a warning from NASDAQ that it would be delisted if it could not get its stock price above $1 per share. Find out what Alicia and Sam think is the brand's biggest problem. Finally, senior editor Joanna Fantozzi joins for this week's extra serving to discuss White Castle's French Toast Sliders and what role breakfast might play in restaurant growth this year. For more on these stories: Del Taco rings in the New Year with new value offeringsNoodles & Company receives delisting warning White Castle brings French Toast Sliders back in the New Year

Merry Christmas! In this Episode of The Pocket Party Podcast we talk with the hilarious Mike Black. We talk, Boomers, white rappers, my first rap battle, favorite colors, Michael Jackson, Paul McCartney, Del Taco, Tamales, Mexican traditions, Reindeer, canned food, Midnight Run, The Happy Three and much much more!Keep moving forward and do something positive for yourself everyday.https://linktr.ee/DarrenCarterSanta Clarita, CA 12/31Encinitas, CA 1/04 Join this channel to get access to perks: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfP9qhI4MnilAy_k6E30-7A/join Darren Carter, also known as "The Party Starter," is an American stand-up comedian and actor born in Fresno, California. He has been entertaining audiences for over 20 years with his unique style of comedy, which blends observational humor and physical comedy. Darren Carter's hilarious Instagram Reels, TikTok videos, YouTube Shorts, and podcast have helped him amass over 300,000 followers worldwide. Carter's comedy career began in the 1990s when he performed at open-mic nights in Los Angeles. He quickly gained recognition for his energetic stage presence and relatable humor, which led to appearances on popular TV shows such as "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno," "Comedy Central Presents," and "Premium Blend." Over the years, Carter has released several comedy albums, including "Shady Side" and "That Ginger's Crazy." He has also performed live all over the country, including at The Comedy Store, The Laugh Factory, and The Improv. The film “Holy Cash” and also his Dry Bar Comedy Special will be released this year. In addition to his comedy work, Carter has also acted in a number of films and TV shows, including "Be Cool," "Who Made The Potatoe Salad," and "Love Chronicles." He also hosts his own podcast, "Pocket Party," where he interviews fellow comedians and shares stories from his own life. Carter is known for his high-energy performances, infectious laughter, and ability to connect with audiences of all ages and backgrounds. He continues to tour and perform regularly, bringing laughter and joy to fans across the country. When Carter is home in Los Angeles, he can be found going to Guitar Center with his teenage son and watching him play every instrument in the building until they get kicked out. Keep moving forward and do something positive for yourself everyday. Thanks for watching my comedy clips, Pocket Party Podcast and Vlogs. Have a great day! Every time you tell someone about me, share a video, or click the "Like" button It helps. So THANK YOU! Have a great day and keep shining!

Suscríbete y síguenos en nuestras redes sociales: https://www.youtube.com/c/modestoradio https://www.youtube.com/user/ModestoLule  Visita nuestra blog: http://www.modestolule.blogspot.com  Nuestro facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ModestoLuleZ  Nuestro twitter: https://twitter.com/modestolule  Nuestro Instagram: https://instagram.com/modestolule  Nuestro Whats App: +52 5524432694 Nuestro Telegram: @cabinaradiosepa Nuestro correo electrónico: padremodestomsp@gmail.com Escúchanos las 24 horas en radio por Internet:  http://www.radiosepa.com/  http://www.emisoras.com.mx/sepa/ TUNEIN: http://tunein.com/radio/Radio-Sepa-s123984/ http://www.emisoras.com.mx/sepa/ A través de la APP de Radio Sepa en ANDROID o en APPLE.

- Trysta Krick, Heat Check - Jason Jones, The Athletic

In this episode of Now That's Significant, a market research podcast, host Michael Howard interviews Tom Johnson, Senior Director of Consumer Insight and Analytics at Jack in the Box and Del Taco, about his journey in market research and the importance of aligning insights with business goals. Tom, with 25 years of experience on both the agency and client side, shares valuable lessons learned from building the consumer insights function at Del Taco from the ground up and navigating the complexities of a merger with Jack in the Box. Here are five key takeaways from the episode: Passion for insights can stem from inspiring mentors: Tom's journey began with a college professor who ignited his interest in market research, highlighting the impact mentors can have on shaping careers. Understanding the full impact of insights requires client-side experience: Tom transitioned to the client side to gain a deeper understanding of how insights are used to drive business decisions. Cross-functional collaboration is essential for maximizing impact: Building relationships with stakeholders across different departments allows consumer insights to influence a wider range of decisions. Strategic prioritization is crucial for managing research budgets: A "barbell strategy," balancing high-impact strategic research with efficient, tactical research, helps optimize resource allocation. Adapting to evolving consumer behavior is key for success: Understanding the nuances of consumer behavior in a changing economic and social landscape is crucial for developing effective strategies. Tune in to this episode to learn more about Tom Johnson's insights on building a successful consumer insights function and navigating the challenges of the fast-food industry. *** Infotools Harmoni is a fit-for-purpose market research analysis, visualization, and reporting platform that gives the world's leading brands the tools they need to better understand their consumers, customers, organization, and market. www.infotools.com Established in 1990, we work with some of the world's top brands around the world, including Coca-Cola, Orange, Samsung, and Mondelēz. Our powerful cloud-based platform, Harmoni, is purpose-built for market research. From data processing to investigation, dashboards to collaboration, Harmoni is a true "data-to-decision-making" solution for in-house corporate insights teams and agencies. While we don't facilitate market research surveys, provide sample, or collect data, we make it easy for market researchers to find and share compelling insights that go over-and-above what stakeholders want, inspiring them to act decisively. One of the most powerful features of Harmoni is Discover, a time-tested, time-saving, and investigative approach to data analysis. Using automated analyses to reveal patterns and trends, Discover minimizes potential research bias by removing the need for requesting and manually analyzing scores of cumbersome crosstabs – often seeing what you can't. Discover helps you easily find what differentiates groups that matter to you, uncover what makes them unique, and deliver data points that are interesting, relevant, and statistically significant, plus see things others can't. Add to all this an impending GenAI feature, and you have an extremely powerful, future-proofed tool.

Ron Petty CEO Farleys Market Holdings is interviewed by David Cogan of Eliances Heroes radio show amfm, iHeart. They discuss what it takes to effect change in large companies and how he's now working with his co-founders to bring big box goods to those without a warehouse club store nearby. Petty also explains how children need education, discipline, and a competitive drive to succeed in business.

Today, Josh and Nicole are diving deep into the ultimate fast-food showdown: Taco Bell vs. Del Taco!  Leave us a voicemail at (833) DOG-POD1 Check out the video version of this podcast: http://youtube.com/@mythicalkitchen To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The US election is 2 weeks away, and we spotlight the various constitutional amendments and referendums being voted on at the state level: marijuana legalization, abortion protections, ranked choice voting, and more! We each share what's on our states' ballots, and how we're voting on these amendments! (And Laura reminds you to "look under the hood" on these proposals to better understand how they will actually work.) Why on earth are there bipartisan efforts to kill open primaries and ranked choice voting in Nevada?? It's only taken over a century, but several states are just now considering taking language about slavery out of their constitutions... But onto happier subjects: you know we love nostalgia, so we can't pass up the opportunity to talk about 90's Halloween and Spooky Szn culture! What is our personal relationship to Halloween, and why is Laura so obsessed with murder? We draw a connection between trick-or-treating and Andrew's fondness for snagging strangers' hotel room service leftovers. Did 90s parents inspect our Halloween candy mainly as an excuse to sneak in some sweet treats? Andrew will once again be the most popular house in his neighborhood with full size candy bars, so line up kids! We've got a slew of entertainment recommendations this week! 'Agatha All Along' on Disney+ (Pam), Ali Wong's 'Single Lady' standup special on Netflix (Laura), and Mario Party Jamboree! (Andrew) And in this week's installment of After Dark, available on Patreon and Apple Podcasts: Pam can't stop thinking about a Whole Foods Cake being emblematic of the state of the economy.  Why have so many fast food restaurants rolled back their introductions of alternative meat products? Laura can't enjoy Del Taco anymore! Andrew will be rioting at his local Trader Joe's if they do away with his top favorites, so watch out TJs! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Suscríbete y síguenos en nuestras redes sociales: https://www.youtube.com/c/modestoradio https://www.youtube.com/user/ModestoLule  Visita nuestra blog: http://www.modestolule.blogspot.com  Nuestro facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ModestoLuleZ  Nuestro twitter: https://twitter.com/modestolule  Nuestro Instagram: https://instagram.com/modestolule  Nuestro Whats App: +52 5524432694 Nuestro Telegram: @cabinaradiosepa Nuestro correo electrónico: padremodestomsp@gmail.com Escúchanos las 24 horas en radio por Internet:  http://www.radiosepa.com/  http://www.emisoras.com.mx/sepa/ TUNEIN: http://tunein.com/radio/Radio-Sepa-s123984/ http://www.emisoras.com.mx/sepa/ A través de la APP de Radio Sepa en ANDROID o en APPLE.

Anand is the Founder and Managing Partner of Gala Capital Partners, a diversified investment and holding company with interests in chain restaurants, software & technology, real estate development, franchising and public equities investment. He has spent the past 35 years in various executive capacities within the Software, Real Estate & Restaurant Industries.Gala Capital Partners invests in (among other things) restaurants. The current portfolio includes CiCi's Pizza, Famous Dave's Barbeque, Rusty Taco and MOOYAH Burgers, Fries & Shakes.Anand grew up in the restaurant industry. His mother was an early franchisee with Jack in the Box. Anand's parents knew the restaurant industry was a difficult career path, so they encouraged Anand to pursue other careers. He graduated from USC with a degree in biology, but he was drawn back into the family business and fell in love with it all over again. When it comes to restaurants to invest in, Gala Capital Partners focuses on five key categories: burgers, chicken, tacos/Mexican, pizza and coffee. The brands that Gala Capital Partners focus on are between 25-350 units. They call those “adolescent brands.”  When evaluating successful franchises, Anand starts with the quality of the food. Focusing on quality and taste is the easiest way for a restaurant to stand out from the competition.  QUOTES “(The restaurant industry) is usually the first job for many young adults and teenagers. It teaches them work ethic, it teaches them responsibility.” (Anand)“When I returned to the (restaurant) business after university, I realized I could learn about finance, I could learn about accounting, I could learn about marketing, I could learn about HR, I could learn about IT, I could get into real estate. It was so multi-dimensional. It was remarkable and it just captivated me.” (Anand) “There were many, many humbling experiences. When you're 25 you have a great deal of confidence and bravado. I had a couple lessons that I learned the hard way and I think I'm far better off for it today.” (Anand) “I'd encourage each and every (restaurant) executive to go work a week and do that every single year. You don't know what a franchisee goes through and you don't know what a store manager goes through until you've done it.” (Anand)“Each and every one of our restaurant brands plays a significant role in how you serve the customer.” (Anand) “Our typical franchisee and the ideal profile is somebody who is new to franchising and really wants to get into the business and work in the business and be hands on in the stores. Or it's going to be someone in a smaller market of the family business and they've got anywhere from 3 to 30 locations and they really love being hands on and involved.” (Anand) “We want very active and hands on operators. People who want to be there and build relationships with their leadership teams, with their managers, with their employees. They want to participate and support their local communities. Those are the folks we're looking for.” (Anand)  TRANSCRIPT 00:01.44vigorbrandingHello, everyone. Today’s guest is Anand Gala of Gala Capital Partners. Put simply, Anand is an investor, and one of those investments is restaurants. But I’ve known him for quite a while, and I’m always blown away by his stories, his growth, and and everything in between. So this will be a great conversation. Anand, welcome to Fork Tales. Thanks for doing this program. 00:25.38Anand GalaAbsolutely. My pleasure. Thanks for having me, Michael. 00:28.50vigorbrandingPerfect. Well, hey, so I know we were talking, catching up a little bit before because I’m fortunate to have known you for a while. um You know, I was saying, when people hear about Gala Capital Partners, it sounds ah very regal, which it is. It’s an amazing company and the growth is is astronomical, which we’ll talk about, but it didn’t really all start out that way, did it? 00:47.08Anand GalaYou know, no, it’s everybody’s got a, everybody’s got a story. I guess you can say everybody’s got a story. And mine is um is probably very familiar. 00:58.92Anand Galato many others that are you know that were raised in immigrant families that that came from humble beginnings. And it’s just a story of a lot of hard work. It’s a story of intentionality by my family, by my parents to really invest in me ah in an education around operations and around entrepreneurship that candidly none of us really knew we were doing at the time. 01:24.49vigorbrandingYeah, I mean, you you were literally, I think when I first met you, you you were a child basically being babysat by the dishwasher, right? You were in the restaurants at a young, young age. Talk a little bit about that. 01:34.34Anand GalaYeah, absolutely. So my mom was a franchisee of Jack in the Box. And that was early on when they just began franchising. I think she might have been franchisee number two. 01:45.49vigorbrandingWow. 01:45.60Anand GalaAnd that was 1982 or 83. I must have been eight or nine years old. And she started working 16, 18, 20 hours a day because you know that’s what an operator does. 01:56.08Anand GalaThat’s what an entrepreneur does. You have to figure it out. And I just didn’t see her very often. And so therefore, the best way for her to make sure that she had an eye on me and I spent time with her was for her to bring me to work. And that was daycare. That was after school care. That was vacations and holiday care. You know, that’s what it was. That’s how I spent my time. And so I literally grew up in the back of a restaurant ah and in some cases standing on a milk crate so I could see over the front counter and and talk to customers. But that that was it within eyesight and earshot. 02:27.89vigorbrandingThat’s great. And you know, the the restaurant business has to be in your blood. And obviously, yeah it was literally infused in you from a young age. And I think that’s, ah again, i you can’t help to learn, you can’t help to see. I think it’s one of the most incredible experiences ah for anybody ah is to work in a restaurant. You learn a lot about sales, you learn a lot about people, about hustle, about ah yeah just everything in in between, dealing with problems on your feet. When someone complains, it’s ah it’s ah it’s a phenomenal way to ah get an education, that’s for sure. 02:57.22Anand GalaAbsolutely. and i’ll And I’ll take it a step further. I think it’s fascinating because it not only teaches you all of the things that you mentioned, it’s usually the first job for many young adults or or teenagers. 03:07.18vigorbrandingMm hmm. 03:09.41Anand GalaIt teaches them work ethic. It teaches them responsibility. And one thing that candidly, I’m not sure how it gets taught other than maybe in the home or or through your church or temple or or what have you, 03:22.08Anand GalaBut it’s respect for others, regardless of the position that they’re in. ah It’s an appreciation for hard work and how much it takes to really earn a dollar. 03:32.67Anand GalaAnd the fact that people do what they do so that they can support themselves, their families, have some spending money, develop some independence, it’s remarkable. And, you know, those are lessons and values that don’t get taught very often in many other places. 03:46.25vigorbrandingYeah, no doubt. So okay, so you you youre you’re you’re young, you’re in the restaurant, you’re you’re eight, then you go to USC, right? And you you graduate with a degree in biology. ah So that was, you weren’t on the restaurant path, I don’t think at that point. So what happened there? Where were you headed? Where did you go? And where did how did you end up here? 04:04.53Anand GalaYeah, it’s, you know, don’t don’t all good restaurant operators go into the sciences? Of course. ah it it it is a It is a fascinating path and it’s one that, ah you know, my my parents recognized how hard the restaurant business was. And they wanted my brother and I to have a better life. They wanted us to get an education and and really not have to go through the trials and tribulations that they went through, as every parent wants for their children. 04:31.20Anand GalaSo they thought, hey, we’ll have our kids become doctors. ah That would be great. And I thought, boy, wouldn’t medical school be easier than running a restaurant until I, you know, I i took the ah med school entrance exams and and I tried a couple of interviews for for med schools and I realized that’s not what I wanted to do. I probably should have come to that conclusion much, much earlier in college, but I waited until the end. 04:54.40Anand GalaAnd, ah you know, I thought, okay, I’ll just go help out in the family business, because I know how to do that. And my parents thought, okay, you know, he’s gonna realize how hard this is, and he’ll change his mind quickly and run to med school. And as I got back into the business, I realized how much it just came second nature, how much I truly enjoyed it. And candidly, how much it had to offer. When I was growing up, I thought, boy, the only thing it has to offer is operations. 05:21.61Anand GalaAnd I got a great education and experience in operations. But when I returned to the business after university, I realized I can learn about finance. I can learn about accounting. I can learn about marketing. I can learn about HR. I can learn about IT. t I can get into real estate. there It was so multidimensional. It was remarkable. And it just captivated me. It drew me in. And I had an insatiable curiosity and appetite to learn. 05:47.54Anand Galaand And so every single day it drew me in further and further and further to the point that there was just no return. This was it. 05:54.51vigorbrandingthat’s That’s, that’s awesome. That’s awesome. Well, so I mean, now we’ll jump into to to to life after after school, you you get involved as a is a franchisee, correct? That’s what you that’s that was your first sort of for you were young, I think you bought your first franchise, right? 06:11.11Anand GalaYeah, that’s right. So you know growing up in the restaurant space was fantastic. But the challenge at the time within Jack in the Box was there were a limited number of franchisees that were allowed to expand. And it was because the company was in a very large expansion phase for itself. And so in large markets like Houston and Los Angeles where we operated, there simply weren’t that many opportunities for us because the company had already scouted them out and had already tied them up. 06:40.93Anand GalaSo I left the family business when I was 25 and I became ah I think the youngest franchisee for Applebee’s and started building stores throughout California the exact same time same year I became I believe also the youngest franchisee for Del Taco at the time. 06:59.02vigorbrandingwow 06:59.12Anand GalaAnd I was 25 years old. I was building Applebee’s from Bakersfield to Fresno and and later in the Bay Area and was building Del Taco restaurants outside of Sacramento and Modesto and Stockton and small markets there as well as in Phoenix, Arizona. And so I was traveling a lot and I think when you’re young and you’re not married and you don’t have other responsibilities and You’ve got a lot of energy. 07:22.40Anand Galaah You can really you know push the push the pedal. And so I did. I learned a great deal during that period of time. And I learned a lot about what ah what I did know and what I didn’t know. 07:31.09vigorbrandingY 07:33.97Anand GalaI’ll tell you, there were many, many humbling experiences. 07:35.59vigorbranding‘all bet. 07:37.63Anand GalaBecause when you’re 25, you have a great deal of confidence and bravado. And I had a couple of lessons that I learned the hard way. And um I think i’m I’m far better off for it today. 07:49.97vigorbrandingYeah, we’ve learned a lot more from our mistakes and our wins, that’s for sure. 07:53.08Anand GalaYeah. 07:53.18vigorbrandingAnd ah so it’s it’s interesting too, because we’ll talk about this in a moment, but I mean, you know, obviously, ah you know, at Vigor, we do marketing for restaurants, and we deal with ah franchisees, and we deal with franchisors, the folks that own the brand and control the brand. 08:07.88vigorbrandingAnd and sometimes there’s, there’s dissension among the ranks. I mean, there’s, you know, and you’re you’re you’re on both sides of it. So I’ll be really interested to hear your perspective on the whole thing. 08:18.23Anand GalaYeah, yeah it’s it’s been a fascinating journey, having been a franchisee from 83 all the way to or 82, I guess all the way to, I think about 2014 is when we finally ah decided we were going to start selling and not start selling the brands, but we exited most of the brands that we were involved in. 08:35.37vigorbrandingMm hmm. 08:37.22Anand GalaAnd so prior to that, we had sold our jack in the box business and sold our Del Taco business and, and then by 2014 sold our Applebee’s business. And we we still our franchisees a famous day’s barbecue in California. 08:46.15vigorbrandingMm hmm. 08:49.86Anand Galaah But then starting in 2017, we started investing in and acquiring small franchiseurs. And what’s interesting is we took a very different approach to being a franchisor. Having walked a mile in the shoes of the franchisee, literally, and still being a franchisee, i I fundamentally understand the approach to business and the relationship that a franchisee has. And I try to bring that knowledge and experience and insight to the relationship that we bring as a franchisor. 09:23.64Anand GalaWe acknowledge that a franchisee makes their money off the bottom line and a franchisor makes their money off the top line. That being said, discounting your royalty is not the solution you because you want a financially strong franchisor that has the capital to make the investments in the people and the systems and the resources to really drive your business. 09:45.68Anand GalaIf you cut the royalty down to call it 1%, what’s left for them? 09:45.83vigorbrandingThat’s right. 09:48.63vigorbrandingMhm. 09:50.10Anand Galayou’re not gonna get the best talent, you’re not gonna get the best support. And so it becomes a vicious cycle if you go down that road. I think that what most franchisees ah do focus on and and I think many recognize is rather than try to reduce the royalty, let’s drive accountability and expectations with the franchise or to say we expect best in class marketing, best in class leadership, best in class operations, 10:11.11vigorbrandingMhm. 10:17.38Anand Galaum And so please make sure that you’re hiring those people, make sure that you’re driving those attributes ah through the brands, because that’s what makes us better. you know Please invest in us, please support us. And that’s how we try to bring the parties together. That doesn’t mean that we’re free of any discontent from time to time, but that’s our responsibility is to work through that. 10:42.35vigorbrandingSure. I mean, I’ve always said and I feel very strongly that empathy is probably one of the more powerful like emotions, if you will, and you know, understanding both sides of it from where you’re your you seat from growing up in it. And then being on the other side, it’s I think that’s very powerful to have that that understanding that that that intelligence that hey, I understand I’ve been in your shoes. I know what’s important to you. Here’s what’s important. And and there’s this partnership, right? 11:06.60vigorbrandingIt’s almost like you treat them with as family. ands they’re’re’re They’re a part of your company because they are. i mean they’re They’re your brand. right They’re an extension of it. 11:13.80Anand GalaAbsolutely, and I would even go a step further and I’d encourage each and every executive or leader in a franchise or to go work a week and do that every single year in the stores because honestly, you don’t know what a franchisee goes through. 11:23.83vigorbrandingYeah. Mm-hmm. 11:29.38Anand GalaYou don’t know what a store manager goes through until you’ve done it. You you may have the the best degrees on the wall. um and and lots of experience from lots of other brands, but until you really walk a mile and and do what they do, ah then I think you build a tremendous amount of credibility and and candidly empathy at the same time. 11:49.25vigorbrandingSure. 11:49.40Anand GalaSo I think it helps you connect with with lots of operators and franchisees. 11:55.71vigorbrandingThat’s great. So, okay. So one of your biggest investments was Muyah, burgers, fries, and shakes. Okay. So, and i I was fortunate. 12:01.37Anand GalaYeah. 12:02.41vigorbrandingI actually came out to see you. I was out in California and I ate at one of your, at one of your restaurants. Phenomenal. It was a great ah burger. I’m not just saying that now, but the thing is there’s lots of burgers out there. And I was quoted on a previous podcast. 12:13.42vigorbrandingah I had a gentleman by the name of Audley Wilson on who created a robo burger, which is the yeah ah basically the burger vending machine. 12:18.71Anand GalaYeah, yeah. 12:21.05vigorbrandingAnd, you know, ah my my line my line was no one American ever went bankrupt trying to feed America hamburgers. So, I mean, but there’s a lot of competition out there, isn’t there? I mean, how does how do you guys stand out? 12:30.45Anand Galathere There is. 12:31.03vigorbrandingI mean, you know, I mean, I know it’s ah a phenomenal product with great ingredients, but talk talk a little bit about dumuya. 12:38.44Anand GalaWell, i’ll I’ll frame it in a way that I think you’ll definitely get and I’m sure your audience will get, which is why compete with everybody else? Why play their game? they you know If you’re playing somebody else’s game, then you are automatically at a disadvantage because they’ve been playing it a lot longer. 12:54.46vigorbrandingMm hmm. 12:56.28Anand GalaThey created the rules. They’ve been doing this for a while and they know how to win. They’re gonna tilt the deck in their in their favor. So I think you have to decide what you do that is distinct, that is different. How do you define yourself? And so at Mujah, it’s a very simple approach. It’s better ingredients, it’s better quality, it’s better tasting, ah and it’s done with more hospitality, and it’s done fresh in store every day. And so that’s the approach we take, is that we wanna have fresh, never frozen meat, and we want it to be certified Angus beef, 13:33.11Anand Galawe fresh bake our buns in the stores every day, we hand cut our fries, you know, we only use the highest quality ingredients, and we don’t make anything until you order it. So these are all of the different things that we think are distinct and unique. 13:48.02Anand GalaAnd, you know, nobody ever um disliked high quality and great taste. 13:54.56vigorbrandingright 13:54.79Anand GalaSo our perspective is we’re going to compete on taste, on quality, on service, on experience. Now that may cost a little bit more, but candidly when you put it all together and you’re doing sort of the value formula, it still comes out to be a tremendous value because of what you get, not what you pay. 14:13.95vigorbrandingYeah, no doubt. So, okay, burgers aren’t your only restaurant. You’re you’re involved with a portfolio. you have You have pizza, tacos, coffee, and everything in between. what What criteria do you use when evaluating which restaurants to invest in? 14:27.84Anand GalaWell, your statement earlier, which was nobody ever lost money selling hamburgers to Americans, I would take it a step further and say, you know, there’s a bunch of different categories where 14:37.50vigorbrandingYeah. 14:38.40Anand GalaThe world already knows what you do and how to use your business or your product or your brand. And so we focus on five primary categories. That doesn’t mean that we won’t look at and invest in things around the periphery as well. But those five categories are burger, chicken, tacos or Mexican pizza and coffee. And not only are they pervasive in American society and candidly, I think foundational. 15:04.85Anand Galaum But I think that what American society culture and its tremendous marketing ah machine behind so many of its companies has done a great job of is exporting that culture around the world. 15:14.31vigorbrandingYeah. 15:18.82Anand GalaI can open up a coffee joint anywhere in the world and I can guarantee you that that local community knows exactly how to use that brand, that product, that concept. The same is true with pizza. The same is true with chicken. 15:30.19Anand GalaThe same is true with tacos and Mexican food. and And thank God for the Taco Bells and the Chipotle’s and so many others that have blazed a trail before us. um and And that end is, it for example, just in the Mexican category, but the same is true in each and every one of those categories. 15:48.21Anand GalaSo our primary focus is within these five big categories. 15:51.97vigorbrandingMm hmm. 15:52.18Anand GalaWe love these brands and we think we can bring a higher quality, better experience approach to each and every one of them. 15:59.57vigorbrandingIt’s fantastic. So you went from being a franchisee to now you own these brands and you own is it rusty taco, you have CC’s pizza, Dunn Brothers coffee, Muyah burger, what am I missing one? 16:12.76Anand GalaNope, that’s it, that’s it. 16:13.57vigorbrandingIs that it? 16:13.90Anand Galathose are the those Those are the main ones, yeah, absolutely. 16:14.05vigorbrandingOkay, good. I nailed it. Yeah, yeah. That’s fantastic. 16:17.73Anand GalaYeah, so we’ve we’ve we’ve invested in these brands and some of them we’ve got partners and you know we’re just excited. 16:18.25vigorbrandingSo 16:23.95Anand Galawe We think that each and every one of them plays a significant role in how you serve the customer. So for example, Cece’s Pizza is a buffet concept. 16:35.11Anand Galaum And people, you know they they may attribute buffet with a lower quality. I’ll tell you, if you walked into the back of a Cece’s, Everything is fresh. They make their dough in-store fresh every single day. 16:46.57Anand GalaThe quality of the ingredients is really, really high. in And I was very surprised by that. I mean, it’s it’s a really high quality product. um So I encourage folks to go and focus on the quality because you can’t go wrong. 16:58.93vigorbrandingHmm. 17:01.08Anand GalaYou’re you’re always going to have a better tasting product with a higher quality product. 17:02.21vigorbrandingHmm. That’s great. So now on the opposite end there, so how how do you then ah interview or evaluate potential like franchisees or investors? 17:15.40vigorbrandingHow does that work? I mean, again, playing both sides, these are your babies now. And you know you don’t want to just hand that that off to someone who’s got some money enough money to buy it. 17:19.65Anand GalaYeah. 17:23.70vigorbrandingit’s you know There’s got to be a lot more to it than that, especially for all the care that you put into it. 17:28.63Anand GalaWell, the brands that we focus on tend to be anywhere from 25 to 350 units. 17:33.92vigorbrandingMm-hmm. 17:34.33Anand GalaAnd so we call those adolescent brands. They’re past proof of concept. They’re in a couple of markets. um Maybe they’ve already started franchising. And you know maybe they’ve just hit a speed bump somewhere. 17:45.32Anand GalaMaybe they’re just out of favor. They’re not very sexy. But they are great businesses. As we think about it, every brand goes through a cycle. And there’s a cycle of of evolution and then innovation and then scaling up and so forth. 17:55.57vigorbrandingMm hmm. 18:00.85Anand GalaAnd so the same franchisee that’s a 300 unit KFC or Taco Bell franchisee may not be an ideal candidate for what we do. because they’re focused on scale. They’re focused on large markets controlling big pieces of the business. And candidly, we’re focused on folks that are really involved in their market. So our our typical franchisee and probably the the ideal profile of our franchisee is gonna be somebody who is either new to franchising but really wants to get into the business and work in their business um and and be hands-on and in the stores. 18:38.32Anand Galaor it’s gonna be somebody that’s probably in a smaller market or it’s a family business and they’ve got anywhere from three to 30 locations amongst whatever they’re involved in. 18:48.51vigorbrandingYeah. 18:50.53Anand GalaAnd they they really love being very hands-on, not to mean that they’re in the stores every day all the time, but they really enjoy being involved in their business. It’s not going to be just an investment for them. 19:03.06Anand GalaThey really they they believe this is it. And so we want very active hands-on operators. that’s the That’s the easiest way for us to describe them. ah and And so when somebody really knows their business, they know their business and they want to be there. 19:16.69Anand GalaThey want to, you know, build relationships with their with their leadership teams, with their managers, with their employees. They want to participate and support their local communities. Those are the folks that we’re looking for. 19:28.70Anand GalaAnd those are the ones that that do the best in our organization. 19:28.83vigorbrandingThat’s awesome. 19:31.48vigorbrandingmost successful at the end of the day, right? 19:32.98Anand GalaYeah, absolutely. 19:33.61vigorbrandingVery cool. Probably like ah your mom was, right? When she started out, you know? 19:36.82Anand GalaThat’s right. That’s right. 19:39.60vigorbrandingI mean, it you know, it all comes back around. So when when you look at like a successful growing restaurants or I guess brands to maybe invest in or buy, um is there a common denominator? Is it always like that sort of fresh type of thing? 19:50.01vigorbrandingOr is there anything that you have in your criteria that you’re that you’re really kind of honing in on as far as there’s something you’re seeing in the market that you that you’re that you find to be ah ah successful or you think will be successful? 20:01.93Anand GalaYou know, the the ingredients are very simple. um First and foremost, we start with the food. And interestingly, a lot of people look at franchises and they just see it as a business. 20:13.19Anand GalaThey don’t think of it as what does the business do. So we always, as I mentioned earlier, we have a ah disproportionate focus on quality. 20:20.47vigorbrandingThat’s 20:21.19Anand GalaAnd so we start with the food. I think in in a world where there is so much commoditization and so much a sea of sameness across so many different brands and products, the the easy way to stand out is focus on quality, focus on taste. 20:23.39vigorbrandinggreat. 20:38.35Anand GalaPeople go out to eat because food tastes good. If you wanted bad food or you wanted bland food, you could probably just do that yourself. But you go to restaurants because they’re known for something. 20:49.96Anand GalaAnd so we wanna make sure that when you come in and you’re getting something that we are known for, that you say that’s a darn good, whatever it is, taco, burger, pizza, that’s a darn good ah you know beverage, coffee, tea, you know whatever that was. And you wanna say, geez, I’m glad I went out for that rather than trying to make something at home. 21:10.45Anand GalaSo distinctly, it’s gotta be darn good. Now from there, we look at the bones of the business and usually we’re investing in things that we think we can substantially improve. 21:22.44Anand GalaWhether it’s unit count, whether it’s quality or process or profitability, but if the product itself is pretty darn good, then you can work on the rest. 21:31.08vigorbrandingMm hmm. 21:31.73Anand GalaYou can figure out how to get them to better profitability, faster growth, ah yeah what whatever it may be, we think we can help. 21:32.06vigorbrandingMm hmm. 21:39.94vigorbrandingYeah. but You make a really good point, a very stupid one, especially when it comes to food. like you know Obviously, we have the vigor brand for the markets, restaurants, but we also have ah an agency called Quench. It does food and beverage and CPG. 21:51.67vigorbrandingAnd what we’ve known and noticed is you know when the economy is down, sure, there’s there’s a reason out there for dollar menus and there’s saving stuff. But you know the the place where people will, for lack of a better word, treat themselves is is what they put in their mouths, right? 22:04.79vigorbrandingI mean, so they’ll they’ll they’ll still pay for premium ice cream. 22:05.31Anand GalaAbsolutely. 22:08.35vigorbrandingwhen it’s when things aren’t so good because that’s that that little pleasure they can have it’s not it’s not you know obviously it’s not some overindulgence or ah a great expense but a great burger i mean it’s pretty it brings a lot of joy you know so yeah 22:21.99Anand GalaIt’s the little things that bring you joy. I couldn’t agree more. I’ll tell you, you know, I didn’t understand the difference in the various qualities of ice cream, ah except in the CPG aisle, right? you You knew that you could get the store brand, which was one thing. And don’t get me wrong, it’s tasty. And it’s a nice treat. Or you could go for the super premium with a very high butterfat. 22:42.97Anand GalaUm, and, and so I thought, well, geez, I guess this experience only exists in the grocery aisle until one day I tried a Brewster’s or a Handel’s ice cream. 22:53.69Anand GalaUh, and, and I was blown away. Now it’s not the kind of thing that you’re going to go for every day or every week. 22:59.51vigorbrandingRight. 23:00.35Anand GalaBut when I think about having ice cream, I can go to a lot of different places, or I can just say when I go out for ice cream. as infrequently or frequently as that is, I just wanna get something that I know is gonna be so delicious. 23:14.33vigorbrandingright. 23:15.67Anand GalaAnd I’m gonna go to the place where it’s just gonna knock my socks off. And I’ll pay just a little bit more and I’m okay with that. I just won’t do it as often. But I want it when I want and it. And I’ll tell ya, it’s the service, it’s the quality, it’s the taste. 23:29.23Anand GalaThose things combined create the addiction that you just have to have it. 23:32.64vigorbrandingThat’s it. and I’m sure in most of your brands, you have a lot of repeat clients coming in because they’re they’re getting the quality, they see the quality, they taste the quality, and it’s worth it. It’s an ongoing, probably, I’m sure it becomes habitual. so that’s That’s fantastic. so okay I want to talk about like the ru last year, I think it was last year, you bought Rusty Taco and Dunn Brothers. 23:53.84vigorbrandingum with Gala Capital. He did it with ah an all cash deal. So you didn’t take on any debt. um Talk to me about cash deals and and what are the advantages, disadvantages, and I know you’re you’re adverse to debt. I i am too. So I absolutely respect that. So talk to me a little bit about that and how you how you’ve done all that. 24:10.94Anand GalaWell, you know but in in both cases, they needed some investment. They needed some love. And if you put leverage on a business, you’ve got a lot of reporting requirements. You’ve got you know metrics that you’ve got to hit, ratios you’ve got to hit and report to your bank. It it puts constraints on you. 24:28.99Anand GalaDebt is not bad. Debt is fine. It’s a tool to grow a business. But the business has to be ready to grow in a meaningful way. And it’s got to be pretty stable and strong ah in order to continue to fulfill those criteria that your bank is going to ask you about. And in the case of these two brands, we thought that these businesses needed some work. They weren’t they weren’t bad businesses, but they just needed some work. 24:55.76Anand GalaAnd our perspective is we’d rather do that with our own money and do it in a way that we don’t have a lot of constraints on us. We can make the investments that we need to make that are for the long run. And that may be five years, 10 years, 20 years, but when you’ve got ah when you’ve got debt, you know you really need to focus on cash flow rather than making those investments that need to happen and pay off over the long period of time. 25:20.85Anand Galabecause you’ve got to service that debt. So our perspective is let’s do it where we’ve got a lot of freedom, a lot of flexibility. Let’s go ahead and make these investments. We’ll do it with all cash. And that way we’ve got a little more control over what we do, when we do, how we do. And as we get these things ready and we’re starting to grow them and scale them up, then we’ll look at what can they support reasonably. And we’ll we’ll probably put a little bit of debt on each of these businesses, but it’ll be some time in the future. 25:50.74vigorbrandingGotcha. That makes total sense. so So when you’re working on on a new franchise, um you always you make it a point to have very detailed conversations with current franchisees, which is is very smart. um How does that process work? And you know what do you learn you know from those conversations? 26:08.06Anand GalaWell, I think that there are some franchisees that candidly have just been waiting for the phone to ring so they can talk to somebody. It is fascinating to me how infrequently folks are speaking to franchisees, including executives of brands. 26:22.83Anand GalaThey think they’ve got it all figured out and they’re just gonna send the memos out and send the promotions out and everybody needs to get on board. Now, in in many cases, that may be true, but you do need, this is a team effort. You gotta remember, the franchisee puts up the money. The franchisee runs that restaurant. 26:40.17Anand Galayou You know, they’re taking more risks than the franchise or. And so you have to respect them as effectively your partner in the business. And you don’t always have to agree. They did sign an agreement. You do control the intellectual property and you’re going to set the the tone and the direction of the brand and the business. But it’s a collaboration. 27:00.32Anand Galaand And I think no different than in a successful marriage or a successful partnership or even in a successful corporate environment. You have to find a way to effectively communicate with your peers. And I consider the franchisees to be our peers. So we want to hear them. We want to listen to them. We want to take their ideas and their feedback into consideration. And ah you know, listen, we’re we’re not the ones that have it all figured out. 27:24.87Anand GalaAs the old saying goes, some of the best ideas come from the franchisees because they are toeto toe to toe face to face with the customer. 27:30.43vigorbrandingYeah. 27:31.97Anand GalaThey see the behavior. 27:32.45vigorbrandingThat’s it. 27:32.93Anand GalaThey see the interaction every single day more often than we do. That’s for sure. 27:38.07vigorbrandingYeah, they’re the boots on the ground. Have you ever backed away um from a deal based on and you certainly don’t have to mention any names, but have you ever backed away from a deal based on some feedback that you’ve heard from the franchisees? It kind of scared you off a little bit. 27:48.85Anand GalaYou know, we have, we have actually. 27:50.73vigorbrandingWow. 27:50.94Anand Galaah there There were concerns in one brand that we looked at and there were a number of franchisees that said, geez, you know, um I’m not making money. I’m losing a lot of money. I can’t keep doing this. 28:02.56Anand GalaI’m just gonna close my store down. And we heard that over and over and over again. So then you have to think to yourself, what am I really buying? And and maybe the investment banker did a great job in polishing this thing up and and putting a story behind it. 28:16.29Anand GalaBut, you know, when you really get to the reality of it, this wasn’t gonna be much of a brand for much longer. And so we have to make the hard decisions that we either are gonna say, no, thank you, or we’re gonna you know we’re going to have to recommend a price adjustment um because we think in order to really stem the stem the loss there of franchisees, we’re gonna have to put a lot of incentive in place. We’re gonna have to make a big investment into them and their marketing and their operations. And that changes the economics of a deal. 28:48.13vigorbrandingYeah, I mean, that that that that totally, totally tracks. I mean, and it’s it’s interesting because yeah as an agency, too, we’ve we’ve had several situations where, and we were talking about this earlier, you were on both sides, the franchisee-franchise, or I think that’s really, in a way, your superpower. I think your empathy and the understanding really is ah is ah is it a massive benefit ah in your in your world. and ah But many times, we’ve been asked to for lack of a word act like the whatever you call it bulletproof vest liaison mediator between the the franchisees and the franchisor and I always felt like that was like uh I mean we’re happy to do it as an agency but I always felt like that that that just it signals that there’s a really a communication gap you know what I mean that to you really should you know yeah 29:29.90Anand GalaOh, I think you’re right. I think you’re right. I encourage people have the hard conversations. I’m not saying that you’re gonna be comfortable doing it. They they are uncomfortable conversations, but it that’s just life. 29:43.08Anand GalaThat’s just life. 29:44.79vigorbrandingYeah, no doubt. All right. Well, let’s have some fun with us now. How, I mean, you have a lot of restaurants. 29:47.59Anand GalaYeah. 29:49.23vigorbrandingI mean, obviously you can, you have your choice every day. I’m sure you do, but you, you eat in your restaurants that you invest in, correct? 29:55.66Anand GalaOh, every week, every single week, yep. 29:56.65vigorbrandingOkay. That’s what I wanted to ask you. How often and like, what, you know, is it a coffee thing? Then I’ll get a pizza one day and maybe a burger the next. 30:03.48Anand GalaYeah, I’ll mix it up, exactly. 30:04.69vigorbrandingNice. Nice. Nice. All right. So now I want to get your opinions on some of the menu items in your restaurants and your current portfolio. 30:10.38Anand GalaOkay. 30:11.59vigorbrandingOkay. So what’s the best burger on the menu at Mujah? What’s your go-to? 30:16.68Anand GalaYou know, so so Best Burger, that’s such a personal question, right? Everybody’s got their own approach. Mine, I’m i’m a real fan of what made them successful, right? What is their core product? And for us, our core classic is the Muyad Double Cheeseburger. 30:37.47vigorbrandingNice. 30:37.60Anand GalaMan, it is just such a amazing, delicious burger the way that it should be made. It’s it’s fantastic. If I’m feeling indulgent, i’ll I’ll pop some jalapenos on there, but oh, it’s my go-to. 30:48.61vigorbrandingUh, I’m getting hungry. I didn’t eat lunch today. So I’m, you know, I’m with East coast. So I’m, I’m, I’m ready. 30:54.19Anand GalaYeah. 30:54.60vigorbrandingThat’s, that’s fantastic. All right. CCs. If you’re building your own pizza, what are we getting? 30:59.66Anand GalaSo again, I’m a classic kind of guy. It’s gonna be probably a pepperoni, ah but I’ll tell you what, if you haven’t had it, 31:01.97vigorbrandingMm-hmm. 31:07.71Anand GalaCece’s is known for a mac and cheese pizza. 31:12.16vigorbrandingOh, wow. 31:12.46Anand GalaNow, it’s not something you’re gonna eat every day, but it is definitely something you have got to try. It is addictive. 31:19.32vigorbrandingI’ll take your river. I’m Italian. So I’m, you know, Mac and cheese. We never put it on pizza. I don’t know. So, but that’s definitely and both good foods. 31:22.99Anand GalaI know, I know. It sounds wacky, but you just gotta give it a shot one day. 31:28.54vigorbrandingYou know, put it together. You know, it’s like peanut butter and jelly probably. So maybe, maybe it works. 31:31.22Anand GalaYeah. 31:32.65vigorbrandingah Famous Dave’s barbecue. You ribs, chicken or catfish? 31:36.50Anand GalaBoy, I’m gonna throw you for a loop here. um Although I love all three of those, but you’ve gotta try the brisket. 31:44.14vigorbrandingAh, okay. 31:44.11Anand GalaOh my goodness, it is fantastic. 31:45.58vigorbrandinglove I do love brisket. 31:47.29Anand GalaNow, if i’m if I’m not having the brisket, it’s the St. Louis style ribs. Hands down, the juiciest, meatiest ribs I’ve ever had in my life. They are, oh, they’re addictive. 31:59.10vigorbrandingYou’re you’re not not just the owner, you’re you’re you’re obviously a connoisseur and a fan, so and comes that comes through. That’s not marketing, I can tell. All right, Dumb Brothers Coffee. how what What are we ordering there? like what What’s your go-to there? 32:10.93Anand GalaSo if you don’t know much about Dunn Brothers, we roast our coffee fresh in the locations. 32:15.52vigorbrandingUh-huh. 32:17.25Anand GalaThat is really unique. um And so the coffee you’re having, or coffee-based drink you’re having, the coffee that goes into that has been roasted within the last few days. 32:27.48vigorbrandingBe a test. 32:27.62Anand GalaThat, if you haven’t tried fresh roasted coffee, is remarkable. You can truly, truly taste the difference. 32:35.40vigorbrandingUh-huh. 32:36.61Anand GalaSo for me, it’s just what is the um the the micro lot or special roast that they have during that time frame? And it’s that with maybe just a little bit of milk or just a splash of cream, but just trying to keep it simple so you really get all the real flavors and notes of that coffee coming through. 32:57.21Anand GalaSo I’m a simple guy when it comes to coffee. 32:57.36vigorbrandingAbsolutely. Yeah. Hey, i mine’s just black with a few ice cubes in it. You know, I call it the grandma Agnes move. 33:02.69Anand GalaYeah. 33:03.95vigorbrandingMy grandmother used to always put ice cubes in her coffee. 33:05.46Anand GalaYeah. 33:06.56vigorbrandingAnd so I’ve been drinking coffee all my life, but I love just black ice, black coffee with a little ice cubes in it. And I said, I don’t do the triple latte half oat milk. 33:12.68Anand Galaso So you’re saying that grandma invented, grandma invented iced coffee. 33:15.46vigorbrandingyeah There you go. 33:17.38Anand GalaThat’s what you’re telling me. 33:18.12vigorbrandingyeah It’s not even ice, just a few ice cubes just so I don’t burn my mouth. And it’s probably because I like to drink coffee and I don’t, you know, so it’s not, not loaded with ice, just, you know, a few ice cubes just to cool it off. 33:21.75Anand GalaAh, okay. 33:26.57vigorbrandingRight? So very, very sensitive lips. 33:27.05Anand GalaAll right. 33:29.61vigorbrandingOkay. Rusty taco, pork, beef, shrimp, chicken. 33:31.44Anand GalaYes, sir. 33:34.24Anand Galayou gotta to try the Rusty Taco. It’s the original named for our founder, the namesake. 33:36.79vigorbrandingOkay. home 33:40.53Anand GalaIt’s it’s ah it’s pork with some chunks of pineapple. ah It’s just, I mean, it’s a classic taco, ah which which is the foundation of what Rusty built the brand upon. 33:53.80Anand GalaNow we’ve got a bunch of others and and they’re very sort of Tex-Mex, Taqueria style tacos that are really delicious. So there’s that one. And then I would say, ah Boy, that’s that’s the that’s my go-to every single time, yeah. 34:08.65vigorbrandingPerfect. That’s perfect. So, okay. 34:11.72Anand GalaOh, by the way, if yeah if you haven’t tried, um the queso at Rusty Taco is off the charts. People don’t know that we have it, but we’ve got nachos and you can do that with the queso and you can do brisket or pulled pork or you know any kind of topping you want on there, just off the charts, fantastic. 34:27.40vigorbrandingPerfect. 34:30.84vigorbrandingWell, you’re killing me. Like I said, I haven’t eaten lunch yet. It’s going to one o’clock. So this is this is this is all good. I got to figure out what i’m gonna we’re going to have now. It’s all going through my head. So, okay. What’s what’s up? What’s next for, for, for gala partners? I mean, is there anything else on the horizon? I mean, obviously if you can’t talk about, it you can’t talk about, but anything that you’re, any categories you’re excited about, anything you’re kind of looking at, it anything you can talk about there. 34:52.63Anand GalaYou know, honestly, we’re excited about what we have in the portfolio. we We have so much runway with every one of these businesses that we have that it’s really got to be something special to get our attention. 34:55.64vigorbrandingAbsolutely. 34:58.52vigorbrandingabsolutely 35:02.75Anand GalaAnd right now we just haven’t seen anything that’s that special. So we just double down on what we have and we’re just going deep, going long. 35:09.62vigorbrandingMm hmm. 35:10.05Anand Galayou know With Dunn Brothers, we just expanded into K-Cups and into CPG, so we’re we’re pushing some of our coffee through some grocery stores. 35:10.52vigorbrandingWait. 35:14.74vigorbrandingWow. 35:19.48Anand Galaum We’re going to be redoing, redesigning, and relaunching our direct-to-consumer website and e-commerce pretty soon. We’ve got several new stores and new prototypes in the hopper. 35:30.40Anand GalaThe same is true with Rusty. We’re opening, I think, it’s eight or nine locations this year. um And Muya, we just opened two of our ah very first drive-through locations, both company owned. We want to get the the ball rolling on drive-throughs. And so we’re excited to prove that model out. And so far, the customers love it. 35:48.57vigorbrandingYeah, well, you brought up a couple really, I think, important points. You did load up on a lot of these brands here very recently. And yeah you happened, I mean, no pun intended, but it seems like you covered every food group, like everything that’s important as far as coffee, pizza, burgers, taco, I mean, you know, boy, it’s, ah yeah, yeah, literally, yeah, you nailed it, you nailed it. 35:58.28Anand GalaYeah. Our plate is full. 36:05.78vigorbrandingSo, I mean, it it does make a lot of sense to really kind of drive all that. And and the other thing you brought, which i I personally see a lot is, You know, with our company, you know, we we have about five different agencies in our in our portfolio. and And one being Quench is CPG food and beverage, which is very different than restaurants. They just happen to sell foods. We have another company called Vigor that just does restaurant expertise. But it’s amazing how many are doing the, we have this product, it’s people find it in the restaurant, it’s great marketing, they have it, they love it, like your coffee. 36:35.42vigorbrandingAnd all of a sudden, it’s slotted over CPG. 36:35.64Anand GalaMm hmm. 36:37.06vigorbrandingAnd it’s like people, hey, I i love that coffee. It’s fresh. it’s ah And I walk into the store, and I can buy it. And it’s ah such a smart move. ah but You see it both ways. I’ve seen it from the CPG side going into restaurants, and the restaurant side going into CPG. 36:48.29Anand GalaYeah. 36:49.56vigorbrandingSo I think that’s ah it’s a really, really smart move. 36:49.67Anand GalaYeah, absolutely. 36:52.78vigorbrandingNow, I have one last question. And you know it’s going to be hard for you, probably the hardest thing you have to answer all day, because you can’t you can’t say one of your restaurants. 36:54.72Anand GalaYes, sir. 37:00.72vigorbrandingIf you had one last final meal, what would you eat, where, and 37:00.96Anand GalaAll right. 37:05.55vigorbrandingWith who? 37:08.26Anand GalaBoy, that is a great question. ah First of all, with whom it’d be my family. Hands down, there’s nobody else who I wanna spend time with as often as possible than with my parents and my wife and my kids and my brother and his family. 37:26.81Anand GalaMy family means everything to me. What would the meal be? It’s gotta be something that everybody loves. And so when I think about what does everybody love, it’s probably pizza. 37:36.68vigorbrandingThere 37:38.26Anand Galaeverybody loves pizza. 37:39.72vigorbrandingyou go. 37:40.24Anand GalaAnd you can customize it every which way you want. Where would I go? My goodness. Or what would I have it? There’s a there’s a restaurant in Los Angeles, which ah I truly, truly enjoy. 37:56.39Anand GalaI can’t ever think that I had a bad meal there. And it’s an Italian restaurant. They happen to have amazing pizza. It’s called Osteria Mozza. 38:05.65vigorbrandingNice. 38:05.67Anand GalaAnd they have a a sister brand called Pizzeria Mozza. And the it’s just some of the best food I’ve ever had in my life. It’s the service. It’s the quality. It’s the flavors. 38:17.73Anand GalaIt’s everything all combined. 38:20.04vigorbrandingFantastic. 38:20.05Anand GalaAnd I don’t even remember what I spent. I’m sure it was too much. But, oh man, it’s so memorable. 38:25.90vigorbrandingWell, hey, back to your the concepts on your burger, right? I mean, if it’s a if it if the food hits the mark, you you you really don’t care what you spend. I mean, you know you know it’s it don’t be for those, but quality and and you know it’s it’s so, so important. And you were very smart and you’re a smart guy, you covered it. So if your if your family or anybody in your family watches this podcast, you know you answered the right, you had the right answer. with Only with my family. So that’s fantastic. 38:50.99vigorbrandingand you’re You’re amazing. I love watching what you’ve been doing. it’s It’s a pleasure to talk to you and it’s great knowing you and I look forward to the next time I see you. it Thanks a lot. 39:00.65Anand GalaAbsolutely. Look forward to it. I’ll see you soon. All right. Take care. bye 

I changed a fan, fixed faucet, political texts are annoying, its cold, my shoulder hurts but skating is good, del taco made me doodoo, 2 headed people, crock pot recipes, woman of the hour was ok, do they dissect animals in school?  #podcast 

The great Danny Trejo returns and the show opens with Adam asking Danny to weigh in on the corn vs. flour tortilla taco debate, and his partnership with Del Taco. Then, they discuss what really happened during an altercation Danny was involved in at a 4th of July parade. They also talk about his turbulent upbringing and how it prepared him to help others through his public speaking, the opening a Trejo's Tacos in London, finding his entrepreneurial spirit later in life, and how Michael Mann confusing him with his cousin Gilbert, inspired his name in the movie Heat. Next, Dawson joins the show to read the news including stories about Jay Z's lawyer giving Piers Morgan a “legal ultimatum” after a guest compared him to P. Diddy, the announcement that Kamala Harris will sit down with Bret Baier for her first formal interview on Fox News, and Rotten Tomatoes ranking L.A. Confidential as the best movie of all-time. Finally, racing legend Tony Stewart returns to the show to talk about his move to NHRA racing, F1 in America, how all the technological aids on race cars are hurting the “craft” of driving, and the current state of drag racing. For more with Danny Trejo: ● NEW FILM: Seven Cemeteries - available now in select theaters & digital release. ● INSTAGRAM: @officialdannytrejo ● TWITTER/X: @officialdannyt ● WEBSITE: dannytrejo.com For more with Tony Stewart: ● INSTAGRAM: @tsrsmoke ● TWITTER/X: @tonystewart ● YOUTUBE: youtube.com/tonystewart14 ● WEBSITE: tonystewart.com Thank you for supporting our sponsors: ● http://SimpliSafe.com/Adam ● https://Bioptimizers.com/adam and use promo code Adam ● http://OReillyAuto.com/Adam

Leaders of both parties are campaigning this weekend in pivotal congressional races that could determine whether the Democrats will win back the house. The Dodgers prepare to face off against the New York Mets in the National League Championship Series in L.A. tonight. And, want to try a Bronx-style chopped cheese with Del Taco sauce? We take you to the restaurant serving up a West Coast twist on a New York classic. Plus, more.Support The L.A. Report by donating at LAist.com/join and by visiting https://laist.com.Support the show: https://laist.com

Fun one today as TD defends Del Taco's... Burger??? The guys get into it the morning after a HUGE Padres win.

Chick Fil-A is no longer America's Best Fast Food restaurant.  USA TODAY named THIS chain America's best...is it Del Taco, KFC or Subway 

In this episode of TOP CMO, host Jackson Carpenter sits down with Barry Westrum, former CMO of Taco John's, to explore the fast-food industry from the inside. Barry shares insights from his 30+ year career, spanning iconic brands like Taco Bell, Dairy Queen, and Del Taco. They discuss the power of emotional connections in marketing, the importance of quality in a competitive space, and how Taco John's differentiates itself with bold flavors and innovation. Learn how Barry's experience in product development and franchise relationships has shaped the success of beloved food brands.

Joe, Shari, and jD gather around the water cooler to discuss this week's SNL Hall of Fame episode. What does this trio think of Adam Driver as a nominee?Transcript:Track 1:[1:40] Hey it's JD here and welcome to the SNL Hall of Fame water cooler. It's a pleasure to be here with you. I'm parched so let's head down to the water cooler area where I'm going to meet Joe and Shari. There they are. Joe how are you doing this week buddy?Track 3:[2:00] I'm good I'm good. Shari how are you?Track 2:[2:03] I'm doing great. I got my water bottle right here that I just filled up at the water cooler nice and cold well.Track 1:[2:09] Let's talk some snl hall of fame this week we had uh an excellent episode where ashley bauer came on to present her case for adam driver um shari do you want to take us through the episode sure.Track 2:[2:30] I would love to uh very happy to get to hear from ashley again. This was her second time, I believe. Her first time I wrote down, let me see. I, well, we'll skip that because it'll take me a while to find it.Track 1:[2:46] Kate McKinnon. Kate McKinnon.Track 2:[2:48] Thank you, J.D. Your memory, you and Joe's memory far surpasses mine. Yes, that's right. Kate McKinnon. And of course, Kate is very close to getting in. So we'll see how Ashley does with Adam. She took us, she and Thomas did an excellent job of taking us through some of Adam's best sketches. And there are too many to list. And he, of course, has been a host four times. Who knows, could be number five this season. I know they talked about it on the Saturday Night Network. The chances of him coming back possibly look pretty good. Other hosts have done back-to-back seasons. So we'll see how that goes. And Ashley made an excellent case. She and Thomas both reminded us that his serious acting chops really add to his comedic talent. It really makes him an even better comedian when he comes to something like SNL. So I think that's pretty much the rough run through right there.Track 1:[3:47] Nice. Joe, what do you have to say about the episode this week?Track 3:[3:51] I mean, I agree with Shari. I agree with the episode. Adam is an intense, dramatic actor. And if you look in SNL's history, I mean, I'm just kind of going off of, if you look at like, you know, because that also applies to other great hosts like Tom Hanks, John Goodman, Alec Baldwin. Baldwin so uh if to go back to what uh everyone else was saying could he host again John Goodman did Alec Baldwin did I mean all these other intense dramatic actors did who've also done great jobs so will he be back next year I mean more than most likely uh it you know depends on who else they want you know but if there is an open spot I could see them you know calling him in.Track 1:[4:39] I'd be all for that. I'm a big fan of Adam Driver as a host on SNL. Do you guys have a favorite moment or, you know, a moment that will be on his plaque, perhaps, if he were to be enshrined in the SNL Hall of Fame?Track 3:[4:56] I mean, I got one that I think everyone just goes to. To me, when I heard he was eligible, the first one, the first sketch that popped into mind was Undercover Boss.Track 2:[5:10] Me too.Track 1:[5:11] Right. Right. Of course.Track 2:[5:14] 100%.Track 3:[5:15] Because it does two things. It takes a role that he was known for at the time. So it's kind of like, well, why should this guy host? And it's like, well, we'll take his Star Wars character and apply it into the world or framework of Saturday Night Live. And then he just scores, scores and scores. He's like playing both the Kylo Ren character as well as like a Saturday Night Live character. So basically Kylo Ren in a Saturday Night Live context and to see, you know, the big heavy of the Star Wars universe as someone getting picked on that and then and have him be just as great as everyone else in the sketch. I mean, that's just like a great way to initially like to meet him, you know, because it was probably because I think they said in the other show that was the first sketch after the monologue on his first show. So it's like, yeah, you see the sketch and you're like, yes, okay, this guy, he belongs. Let's do this. And then he hosted four more times. And like, you're just constantly thinking of like, why should he host? You think of that? And then you're like, yeah, they even sequelized it, like they said.Track 1:[6:38] Yeah, I think, you know, one of the things that made that so successful as well was it is a bang on parody of Undercover Boss. I, a guilty pleasure, have spent a lot of time watching Undercover Boss and they really freaking nail the conceit and the delivery of the show. So I think that that enhances it as well. What do you think, Shari?Track 2:[7:05] I agree with what both of you J's have just thrown down. It is a remarkable parody. I am not as big a fan, JD, of Undercover Boss, but I know a lot of people who are. And I have watched it at least once or twice to kind of know what the conceit is and how it kind of moves along. And they do nail it. They absolutely nail it. And the thing I want to mention that you two hadn't, but that Thomas and Ashley both mentioned, is how well he plays with or plays off of or others play off of him. Because Bobby and Taryn and Leslie, just he works so well with all of them. And they're all coming into a universe that he already inhabits. And somehow it all works. I know Bobby is a huge Star Wars fan, so I love that he was able to get involved in that and become a part of the universe. I could tell he's having a ball. And they just all mesh so beautifully, and they tell such a great story.Track 3:[8:13] And to add to everyone's point everything comes together in the end where they're taking undercover boss putting it in the Star Wars universe and then Adam Driver the writing and the performance of Adam Driver giving, I forget who it is but giving him the card that says after a rain comes a rainbow sorry I killed your son And it's like every part of that sketch, like just in that one line, it's like the writing, the performance. I mean, everything is shown off in that brief five seconds.Track 1:[8:54] Did you just clap at us?Track 3:[8:57] Well, I mean, I didn't mean to, but I was trying to signify the moment. I mean, even though I'm doing a podcast, I talk with my hands. So if you can't, I know you can't see me, but I'm conducting my, this is how I am.Track 3:[9:14] But here's something else I just want to go off of, especially what Shari said. Said uh adam blends in with the cast when he hosts that was a big note i wrote when i was listening to the podcast and watching his sketches uh he can either be the center point the fall guy he could you know like in um the oil time tycoon and career day or i mean we'll get back to that But or he could be the straight man.Track 3:[9:49] Which is usually a thankless role in the sleepover sketch where he's the dad who's telling everyone about what happened to his house. You know, usually like I could see like if it was Kate McKinnon or like a female host, they would have the little girl saying, oh, man, that's weird. And then you would have someone else tear and kill him or someone being the dad saying what happened but to have adam do it in such a you know and to see like um him do that and sleep over and then you know be the same guy in oil tycoon that's range i just and then like the fact that he could do any role like any uh any you know that uh that calls for him in a sketch he could do it he could be big he could be subtle he could be you know whatever they need him to be he could be he's.Track 1:[10:44] Probably a dream to write for yeah.Track 3:[10:47] Because like he could do accents he could be angry he could be you know and then like in the kitten skit uh he could be playful and happy and so he just has that range that usually cast members have yeah.Track 2:[11:06] Agreed shari.Track 1:[11:08] Is there a sketch there's uh joe said undercover boss you said you weren't as down with that did you give us a sketch that you appreciate.Track 2:[11:17] Oh no i definitely agree with undercover boss that would have been my choice actually yeah totally uh both both the original and the sequel i just think because that's the character that everybody knows him as. I mean, he's Kylo Ren. He will be Kylo Ren for the rest of his career. And what I like about him is he's okay with that. He's not one of those actors, I'm looking at you, Harrison Ford, who like, I don't want to talk about Han Solo. Adam and...Track 2:[11:49] Adam embraces the fame that Kylo Ren brought him and has ran with that. And I really admire that about him. And he brings that to us now. I do too. Every character he gives 100%, just like he did with Kylo Ren. Just like he's, I know he's done a million roles. I can't even think of all of them. I believe I've seen most of his movies, but he's in so much. And he's fairly young, so he's got a robust career. Career so i see him being a john goodman or as steve martin i think he's going to come back, many many times in the future at least that's my opinion i think i'm right because i just see him being around for a long time because he's so versatile as far as another favorite sketch i have so many uh i agree with joe the one with pete davidson where he plays the crazy oil tycoon i just watched that yesterday yeah unbelievable and i had somehow missed the one he did with bowen where there's a couple expecting the or trying to have the baby rather the gay couple me.Track 1:[12:56] Too when i heard that in the in the podcast i was like wow i don't recall that.Track 2:[13:01] Somehow we have to watch on a sketch by sketch off of youtube now and somehow we missed it and i never I never went back and watched it. And I was so happy that Ashley and Thomas talked about it because I made sure to watch it this time. And again, Adam and Bowen, who would put them together, right? But they are completely believable as a couple. I just loved it.Track 3:[13:27] Again, another ensemble sketch where Adam blends in.Track 2:[13:32] Agreed.Track 1:[13:33] Yeah, it's funny. You know, from a comparison perspective, does he end up being a Goodman, Hanks, Baldwin, or does he end up being a Timberlake where, you know, he's works with one sort of generation. It'll be interesting to see in the years that move forward. If he doesn't show up this year, uh, you know, will the cast change dramatically after 50? I don't, I don't know. No, it could be interesting to see what 51 brings us in those terms. So, yeah.Track 3:[14:15] To go off of that, to answer your question, will he blend in with future casts? It's worth mentioning that he doesn't have a specific sketch that he does with a specific cast member. You know like how timberlake did um well you know you know bring it on down the rappingville or you know dick in a box so he's able to say like i'll come back and he doesn't have to do that sketch with that cast member and that cast member has to do a cameo like he could just show up and do whatever you know and then you know do a kit you know do something innocent do something intense You know, he's not tied down.Track 1:[15:01] Yeah, that's true.Track 2:[15:02] I want to add to what...Track 1:[15:04] Sorry, Sharon.Track 2:[15:05] I want to add to what... No problem. I want to add to what Joe was saying, because that was exactly how I was thinking. JT was very tied to Jimmy Fallon. He was very tied to the Lonely Island. And when they left, they were like his besties. When they left, I think he was no longer as interested. Whereas Adam doesn't have that. He's not tied to any one cast member, just like what Joe says. And I think his career is not stalling out. Sorry, JT, but he kind of disappeared for a while, which I get because he had young kids. He had young kids. I get it. But he walked away. I don't see Adam walking away. I don't know if he has young children as well, but I see him balancing things and I see him being a movie star and in possibly another streaming series. I don't think it's going to stop for him I think he's going to keep going Even if it's just one project a year If he slows down a little Kind of like Tom Hanks is doing right now in his career.Track 3:[16:07] I mean, it's worth mentioning that his character in Star Wars is done. Now, theoretically, it hasn't stopped Disney from...Track 1:[16:14] I'm joking. The movie's been years old.Track 3:[16:16] Your character, whatever, in the Star Wars universe, they'll still use it. But I'm just saying that the Star Wars sequel series has stopped, but Adam's career has kept going. And he's worked with many different directors. And I could see him doing something silly, like a silly comedy. Like he was in that Logan Lucky movie, but then he was also in, I think it was, uh, he was in a movie with Pacino. So, you know, he's able to just keep going. And if his career is going, then, you know, he has something to promote.Track 2:[16:52] Why can't he help?Track 3:[16:53] Yeah. Why can't, exactly.Track 1:[16:54] You know, is there anyone currently in the hall that is a comparison that is like a comparable? I know there's not really from a host perspective, I don't think. Is there any other role that you can see him following? Or let me ask it more simply. Is he a first ballot Hall of Famer?Track 2:[17:18] I don't think so. Right. Only because he's so current. And sometimes people have trouble with recency bias. But I think he's going to be like Will and Kate. hey, I think he's going to get like 63%, 64%. I think he's going to get really, really close. Because I think the recency bias is going to work for and against him, just like it did for Kate and Will.Track 1:[17:43] Yeah, I still think Kate was a, that's a travesty.Track 2:[17:47] She'll be in this year.Track 1:[17:48] She should have been first ballot. She should have been first ballot.Track 3:[17:51] Yeah.Track 1:[17:54] Okay, I would be remiss to lose this opportunity while we're around the water cooler to talk about my favorite sketch. And that is Del Taco. So I'm real curious what Shari and Joe, you think about the Del Taco sketch by Mooney and Bennett?Track 3:[18:16] I mean, I mean, that is something where the host could have been like a director and then you could have had three cast members doing that, the bulk of that sketch. But because Adam is so awesome at being a cast member, he's able to just blend in, you know, and have the same rhythm as the other two.Track 1:[18:39] And that's Beck Bennett and Kyle Mooney, which it's, you know, if you're looking at cast members, you can't look much further than those two when it comes to keeping up. Because they are, you know, banana pants sketches, typically speaking.Track 2:[18:56] Yes. and.Track 3:[18:58] It's almost like they're bringing him into their world because they have that rhythm.Track 2:[19:03] They have.Track 3:[19:04] With each other and then it's like okay why don't we have the host come in and try and do what we do and then he's able to do it i mean almost to the point where you don't even know which one's speaking.Track 2:[19:15] Yeah to a degree and i almost i almost feel like this was a rare moment where kyle's almost like the straight man or the the uh one that they sort of play off of kyle's sort of the play-doh and they're you know beckon and adam are the ones who are like trying to mold him into this perfect yes taco yeah and it's so it's so great it's almost like a sandwich right yeah we got the bread on both ends and then here's poor little kyle in the middle and it's i thought you were talking.Track 1:[19:50] About tacos at first i was going to say you're going to create controversy.Track 2:[19:53] Here um but they they're they're just a not a trio again not a trio i would have put together in my head but worked so beautifully and then a little bit of is that cecily who plays the female, i think it um no um chloe is it one of the chloe chloe chloe chloe chloe Yeah, Chloe Feynman. She puts her little touch in there too. And it's just a really nice melange of talent kind of coming together from all different angles.Track 3:[20:28] Yes.Track 1:[20:30] Yeah. Yeah. I, I, I couldn't agree more. Uh, I, it's going to be interesting to watch. Uh, if he does get 60, it's going to be like, well, why the heck doesn't he get 66? But, uh, we shall see. Let's wrap things up here with the taking a look at the previous three nominees, Beck Bennett, Sherry O'Terry, Garrett Morse. If you were to rank the four in likelihood of getting in, in order, adding in this week we're adding in Adam Driver, what does that ranking look like in likelihood of getting in? Joe, we can start with you.Track 3:[21:13] I would say I would go Sherry first. Actually, no, I changed my mind. Garrett Morris first. Then Sherry. Then because I know this is going to sound bad then Beck and then Driver because I just feel like the other three have done more overall you know that being the case and I know Adams is the host that's right yeah.Track 1:[21:49] So, of course, he can't have done as much as a cast member. And that's why it's important to, you know, like, you wouldn't say a director at the Oscars, well, he didn't act well enough because he's a director. You know what I mean? Like, they're rewarding him for being the best director rather than being the best actor. So, you know, you're falling into the trap, Joe, is what I'm trying to say.Track 3:[22:13] I guess. And maybe it's also because he's recent. I mean, again, how about this? It's only because it's those three. I mean, if we were doing this earlier in the season or something, if I had to rank Adam Driver to Beck Bennett, then maybe I would do Driver over Beck. But it's just, I don't know. It's just, and I guess I'm ranking them in the order that they all appeared in, too. So maybe it's a subliminal thing. I mean, but it's just how I feel. I mean, I'm sorry, but.Track 1:[22:47] No, don't apologize. Shari, how about you?Track 2:[22:50] Okay, so I'm giving what I think is going to happen, not necessarily what I agree with. But I think it's going to be Adam first. I think he has the best likelihood of getting in because he was so recently on the show and he blew the roof off the place. His episode was really good, one of the best of the season. I think that back, because again, I think recency helps. And then Garrett and Sherry are going to be neck and neck, but I think it's going to be Garrett and then Sherry. And they're going to be very close.Track 1:[23:24] Yeah. I think you're right. Sherry, to me, has a similar path to Molly Shannon.Track 3:[23:30] I can see that.Track 1:[23:31] Whether or not she makes it, we shall see. But similar path in my eyes. And I believe Molly started in the 20s. So...Track 2:[23:41] I i don't even think sherry has the following that molly has and sherry hasn't been in the public eye molly's been on stuff and doing stuff molly hosted within.Track 1:[23:51] The last four years right.Track 2:[23:53] Yes and she and he's on that tv show with vanessa bayer that was yes not a huge hit but plenty of people watched it so she had some she had some things going on where sherry has stepped away from yeah the screen and i'm not blaming her from that no no no i'm just saying that people People have, we all know, we're super fans. So, yes, we have longer memories. But a lot of the voters are casual fans, I believe. And they're barely going to know who Sherry is, let alone Garrett. So it'll be interesting to see. But Garrett's been in Two Broke Girls and stuff, so that may help him.Track 3:[24:30] That's a good point.Track 1:[24:31] Yeah, it'll be interesting to watch. 50 is going to be very interesting.Track 2:[24:34] Yes, I can't wait.Track 1:[24:36] Looking forward to it. Well, I'm also looking forward to next week. And next week we are going to be talking with our friend Ryan McNeil, who typically comes on the show to talk about music, and he's making no exception this year. He will be on to nominate Ireland's own U2.Track 1:[24:58] We won't go further than that. Because we don't want to give away anything for next week's episode. But we'll be back next week talking about the episode that appears on Monday. And again, that is Ryan McNeil and, um, Thomas, Matt, and myself. We're going to have a great time. And then we're going to meet around the water cooler and talk some more on behalf of Joe and Shari. This is JD saying, stay thirsty.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/snlhof/donationsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

In this mind-blowing solo episode, Brendan will ask one of the most simple, yet profound questions, 'Why are you at Del Taco?" JK. It's actually even simpler than that, "Are you aware?"Brendan then dives deep into: How and why your environment is creating your personality. The SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT question you can yourself. A fast and fun hypnosis technique that will get you instantly grounded.   How you know when the Universe is talking to you. Why is Gen-Z so damn confident? RESOURCESBrendan FitzgibbonsThe Best Self-Hypnosis Technique Are You Aware w/Ronda Byrne A Bunch of Outpatients Support the show

Semovi te invita a ser parte de la STE como operador de trolebús ¡Regresa el Carro de Comendia de la UNAM!, Aquí te decimos cuando y en dondeLa UE quiere acelerar el entrenamiento de soldados ucranianos, para llegar a los 75 mil  Más información en nuestro podcast

Group Chat News is back and we are going over some of the hottest stories including Airbnb shares drop 14% on earnings miss as company warns of slowing U.S. demand, Disney parks are starting to be soft in attendance, Revolve's (NYSE:RVLV) Q2 Sales Top Estimates, Stock Soars, Chick-Fil-A falls off as number one fast food restaurant and Del Taco takes the top spot, Eli Lilly blows past estimates, hikes guidance as Zepbound, Mounjaro sales soar, Where inflation has hit Americans the hardest, Credit card debt in America reached new high of $1.14 trillion, What happens when Ozempic take over your town, and everyone's favorite WINNERS LOSERS CONTENT

Happy birthday the man himself, Mr. Avery Kidd. Avery talks birthday weekend, and having the most elite waitress in the the lower 48. The craziest cat people start a fight at Swampy's. And what is the correct order of top 10 fast food stops?

Send us a Text Message.Del Taco ranked as the best fast food restaurant in America. Vic shares the full list and shares his personal rankings of fast food places! There are "tiers" that need to be explained. The worst Uber experience happened over the weekend. The stench was actually impressive STFU of the week: People who said they couldn't wait for summer. Now look at us What is "Love Island" and why is it all people are talking about! Best Ice cream flavorPersonal life update and why having something to look forward to is a BIG Key to life. Joe Biden drops out of presidential race & more!!!!Find Vic: @vicdradioFind the pod:@ilysayitbackpod

It's Wednesday, July 24th, A.D. 2024. This is The World View in 5 Minutes written by Jonathan Clark and heard at www.TheWorldView.com.  Filling in for Adam McMannus I'm Ean Leppin. Persecution of Christians in Communist Countries  International Christian Concern (ICC) reports that 72 Christians are imprisoned or missing in communist countries. Fifty-two of those Christians are imprisoned in China, Cuba, North Korea, and Vietnam. The remaining 20 are missing across those nations. An ICC staffer in Asia said, “These numbers are daunting yet unsurprising. Communism is just as dangerous and destructive to Christians today as it was in previous generations.”  In one case, Chinese authorities arrested a Korean Christian for studying the Bible. Chung Yong Cheol faced deportation to North Korea and then a 10-year sentence in a political prison camp.  French Bible Society to Distribute 200,000 Bibles at Olympics The French Bible Society plans to distribute 200,000 New Testaments during the upcoming Summer Olympics in Paris. The special edition will include testimonies from Christian athletes and is being called “More Precious than Gold.”  The title is drawn from 1 Peter 1:7 which says, “Their purpose is to prove that your faith is genuine. Even gold, which can be destroyed, is tested by fire; and so your faith, which is much more precious than gold, must also be tested, so that it may endure. Then you will receive praise and glory and honor on the Day when Jesus Christ is revealed.”  Subway denies service to Christian for Biblical shirt In the U.S., an outspoken Christian street preacher was denied service at a Subway restaurant in Waunakee, Wisconsin because he was wearing a T-shirt that declared homosexuality a sin and referenced Romans 1, reports The Christian Post. Rich Penkoski, who leads the online ministry Warriors for Christ, said he is considering a lawsuit against Subway after he was recently refused service at one of their locations in Waunakee, Wisconsin. According to the video of the incident that has since racked up millions of views on X, an employee admitted that she was refusing to serve Penkoski for reasons she described as "a personal matter.” Here is audio from a portion of that video… Penkoski, who was traveling with other pastors after preaching outside the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, said he believes the incident at the Subway location shows there is a double standard when it comes to denying service to people who oppose LGBT ideology. Subway's corporate office did not respond to CP's request for comment by time of publication. Send a letter of complaint to Subway's President, John Chidsey, to 1 Corporate Dr, Shelton, CT 06484. You can also email corporate through a link in the transcript of this newcast found at TheWorldView.com Jesus said in John 15:19, “If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.” U.S. Secret Service Director Resigns  U.S. Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle resigned yesterday. She faced sharp criticism on Monday from Congress after the recent assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump. Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson told reporters, “It is overdue, she should have done this at least a week ago. I'm happy to see that she has heeded the call of both Republicans and Democrats.”  Pat Fallon, a republican that served on the House Committee said this in an interview the Fox News. Pat Fallon: “I'm glad she's resigning.  I'm glad she will no longer be the head of the Secret Service.  I wish she had been fired, because we need to change the culture of that organization.  This was a catastrophic failure to protect the former President and quite frankly also the leading candidate to be the next President” Meanwhile, Trump blamed the Biden administration for the security failure. He wrote on Truth Social, “The Biden/Harris Administration did not properly protect me, and I was forced to take a bullet for Democracy. IT WAS MY GREAT HONOR TO DO SO!”  Chick-Fil-A Dethroned as America's Favorite Fast Food Chain For nearly a decade, Chick-Fil-A has been America's favorite fast food restaurant. However, the chain fell to third place this year on USA Today's ranking of fast food restaurants based on votes from readers.  The top stop now goes to Del Taco followed in second place by KFC. Del Taco has only 600 locations across 16 states.  Despite this, Chick-Fil-A made $21 billion in sales last year, up 14% from the year before.  Iowa's Abortion Ban goes into Effect And finally, Iowa's six-week abortion ban will go into effect next Monday. A district court made the ruling yesterday. This came after the state's Supreme Court said in June that there is no constitutional right to abortion.  Previously killing unborn babies was legal up to 20 weeks of pregnancy. The new law bans the killing of unborn babies with detectable heartbeats but with some exceptions. Iowa joins over a dozen states to restrict abortion since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022. And that's The World View in 5 Minutes on this Wednesday, July 24, in the year of our Lord 2024. Subscribe by iTunes or email to our unique Christian newscast at www.TheWorldView.com. Or get the Generations app through Google Play or The App Store.  Filling in for Adam McMannus I'm Ean Leppin.  Seize the day for Jesus Christ.

Today's Sponsor: Zenni Opticalhttp://thisistheconversationproject.com/zenni      Today's Rundown:Lainey Wilson Suffers Wardrobe Malfunction Mid-Concert https://parade.com/news/lainey-wilson-suffers-wardrobe-malfunction-mid-concert-july-2024  Body camera video shows Sonya Massey's final moments before she was fatally shot by a deputy   https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/body-camera-video-shows-sonya-masseys-final-moments-was-fatally-shot-d-rcna163019  Eminem brings Taylor Swift's historic reign at No. 1 to an end, Stevie Wonder's record stays intact https://abcnews.go.com/Business/wireStory/eminem-brings-taylor-swifts-historic-reign-1-end-112177450  Warner Bros. Discovery notifies NBA it will match Amazon's $1.8 billion offer to carry league gameshttps://www.cnn.com/nba-rights-deal-match-tnt-amazon-wbd/index.htmlSecret Service Director Cheatle resigns after mounting pressure in wake of Trump assassination attempthttps://www.foxnews.com/politics/secret-service-director-cheatle-resigns-mounting-pressure-wake-trump-assassination-attemptBob Menendez will resign his New Jersey US Senate seat effective August 20https://www.cnn.com/2024/07/23/politics/bob-menendez-announces-resignation/index.html  Harris has support of enough Democratic delegates to become party's presidential nominee  https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c51ywewzpz2o  Chick-fil-A falls off perch as No. 1 fast food restaurant in US, Del Taco takes top spothttps://nypost.com/2024/07/20/business/chick-fil-a-falls-off-perch-as-no-1-fast-food-restaurant-in-us-del-taco-takes-top-spot/   Website: http://thisistheconversationproject.com  Facebook: http://facebook.com/thisistheconversationproject  Twitter: http://twitter.com/th_conversation  TikTok: http://tiktok.com/@theconversationproject  YouTube: http://thisistheconversationproject.com/youtube  Podcast: http://thisistheconversationproject.com/podcasts     ONE DAY OLDER ON JULY 24:Lynda Carter (73)Kristin Chenoweth (56)Jennifer Lopez (55)    WHAT HAPPENED TODAY:1866: Tennessee became the first state to be readmitted to the Union after the Civil War.1969: The Apollo 11 astronauts, two of whom had become the first men to set foot on the moon, splashed down safely in the Pacific.2019: Special counsel Robert Mueller reported to the U.S. Senate that Donald Trump was not exonerated of obstruction of justice and that Russia interfered in the U.S. election to benefit Trump.       WORD OF THE DAY: assuage [ uh-sweyj ]https://www.dictionary.com/browse/assuageto make milder or less severe; alleviate; ease; mitigateTo assuage his guilt over the misunderstanding, he bought his friend lunch, hoping the gesture would ease the tension between them.    DAILY AFFIRMATION: I Choose Not To Compare Myself To Others.Enhances Self-Acceptance: Choosing not to compare yourself to others promotes self-acceptance by focusing on your own journey and accomplishments, rather than measuring them against someone else's standards or achievements.https://www.amazon.com/100-Daily-Affirmations-Positivity-Confidence/dp/B0D2D6SS2D?source=ps-sl-shoppingads-lpcontext&ref_=fplfs&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER   PLUS, TODAY WE CELEBRATE: Tequila Dayhttps://www.nationaldaycalendar.com/national-day/national-tequila-day-july-24On July 24th, commemorate National Tequila Day with a little lime and salt. Mix up a Margarita, Paloma, or a Mamasita to celebrate the day! People have been making Tequila for centuries, and it was once known as mezcal wine. In fact, Tequila is mezcal, but mezcal isn't Tequila. That's because Tequila is distilled from a specific type of agave plant. Also, the law protects its production. Take a sip, and we'll travel into Tequila's history.    

Claremont shopping for new homes or something (wasn't listening) // Del Taco takes the # 1 fast-food spot in the nation over Chick-fil-A / Travis Kelce – WHIP What is Taylor Swift's net worth / Rep Nancy Mace filed motion to impeach Secret Service Director Kim Cheatle // Mega Millions – someone is Eagle Rock matched 5 numbers / Our lotto Captain! Hawarden Fire // 2 wildfires in Riverside caused by fireworks / Wedding invite FAIL!  

Ed Stetzer on X: ""Chick-fil-A dethroned as America's favorite fast food restaurant after 9 long years" "...beat out by Del Taco... KFC, which took 2nd place. Does Pastoral Counselling Have a Future? Preach Grace Until It Feels Dangerous Chuck Swindoll's 'Insight for Today' Daily Devotional LibrarySee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In Other News with Ethan: The passing of Tammie Holland, Eminem dethrones Taylor Swift, Del Taco is America's new favorite fast food, GenZ are relying on their parents to pay for their houses and Home owners going without insurance, 

In the 2nd hour of the Marc Cox Morning Show: Marc questions if Kamala Harris is the right candidate for the Democrats Cully Stimson, Senior Legal Fellow at the Heritage Foundation, joins Marc & Kim to discuss what he thinks foreign leaders are thinking about the US now that Biden has dropped out of the race. Cully also gives insight into when the Democrats will have their nominee settled, and what would happen to their war chest if Kamala isn't the nominee. Nicole Murray gives a check of business In Other News with Ethan: The passing of Tammie Holland, Eminem dethrones Taylor Swift, Del Taco is America's new favorite fast food, GenZ are relying on their parents to pay for their houses and Home owners going without insurance Coming Up: Real or Fake News with Carl, Presley Baker, and Kim on a Whim ,too!!

The best french fries in Southern California Featuring Tommys, Five Guys, Daglas, In N Out, Jack In The Box, McDonalds, Blue Dog, Wahlburgers, Smashburger, Hitching Post, Eureka!, Outback, Fatburger, Islands, Del Taco, Rallys, Fat Sal's, Raising Cane's, Weinerschnitzel, Dodger Stadium, Grill-A-Burger, and Heavy HandedSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Lack of prisoners to help Cal Fire w fires / Let's get Kiki a job! // Walmart lawsuit over deceptive pricing / United airlines loses tire // Ernie Anderson stories / Del Taco 5 days in a row // Tim Conway Sr. Story about car dealership 

Go to http://zocdoc.com/thesip to download the Zocdoc app for free and book a top-rated doctor today! 

Trump verdict and doomsday preppers // Burbank has a lot of gun stores and people thought Tim was the gun guy during COVID // It does not affect regular people's life's whose president on a day-to-day basis // A SoCal woman who was previously arrested on suspicion of kidnapping a child from a Target store was arrested again Tuesday on similar charges. How many times did Jesus walk on water? Donald Trump is a felon // Taco Bell's oversized Cheez-It collab is finally going nationwide // Tim currently has a Del Taco hyper-fixation. 81-year-old man arrested in Azusa ‘serial slingshot' shootings has died 

Tim treated his wife to Del Taco and Walmart // Tim was listening to the Mo'Kelly show and it was incredibly funny because Stefush slept during Mad Max during their movie time, and we have audio // More car talk // Sharks are becoming “more aggressive” around the US and the world // The show is better when the whole crew is here  

Phones ring on the topic TOP 50 ROBOTS OF ALL TIME! (Find out if E.T. is a robot!) The incredible MEATBODIES perform a LIVE SET of music featuring songs from their brand-new album Flora Ocean Tiger Bloom out now! REBECCA ODES and ALAN LICHT from the legendary band LOVE CHILD chat with Tom about their brand new career-spanning compilation Never Meant To Be! Mike tries to get a job at the Great Adventure Animal Safari! Plus Tom gets a call from DEL TACO FROM OLDBRIDGE! SUPPORT THE BEST SHOW ON PATREON! WEEKLY BONUS EPISODES & VIDEO EPISODES! https://www.patreon.com/TheBestShow WATCH THE BEST SHOW LIVE EVERY TUESDAY NIGHT 6PM PT ON TWITCH https://www.twitch.tv/bestshow4life FOLLOW THE BEST SHOW: https://twitter.com/bestshow4life https://instagram.com/bestshow4life https://tiktok.com/@bestshow4life https://www.youtube.com/bestshow4life THE BEST SHOW IS A FOREVER DOG PODCAST https://thebestshow.net https://foreverdogpodcasts.com/podcasts/the-best-show HEARD IT ON THE BEST SHOW PLAYLIST https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2XIpICdeecaBIC2kBLUpKL?si=07ccc339d9d84267 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Libby Watson (@libbycwatson, twitch.tv/libtron) joins the 'boys to talk Digby, Mexican food, and Hungry Jacks before a return visit to Del Taco. Plus, we hear from the Ad Chad final four.Watch this episode at youtube.com/doughboysmediaGet ad-free episodes at patreon.com/doughboysGet Doughboys merch at doughboys.kinshipgoods.comAdvertise on Doughboys via Gumball.fmSources for this week's intro:https://steakholderfoods.com/most-consumed-meats/https://www.vallartaeats.com/birria-origins/https://www.mashed.com/897922/the-untold-truth-of-birria/https://www.eater.com/22215718/how-birria-tacos-conquered-americahttps://deltaco.com/index.php?page=news&item_id=241See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.